The police have warned the public against opening fake cases for insurance purposes, saying it had become commonplace in KZN.
|||Durban - The police have warned the public against opening fake cases for insurance purposes, saying it had become commonplace in KwaZulu-Natal.
Provincial police spokes-man Colonel Jay Naicker said a Reservoir Hills man had pleaded guilty to charges of perjury and attempted fraud in the Pinetown Magistrate’s Court after he opened a false case.
Anindren Naidoo, 37, opened a case at Sydenham SAPS in February, alleging that his vehicle had been stolen from Nola Terrace in Reservoir Hills. He was sentenced to a fine of R20 000 or 10 years’ imprisonment, of which half was suspended for five years.
In a separate incident, a 20-year-old man is due in court next week on charges of perjury. Police spokesman Captain Thulani Zwane said the man sold his fridge to a pawn shop in the Point area and later opened a case at the Point police station claiming that it had been stolen.
Naicker warned the public not to report false cases to the police. “It is a criminal offence to report a false case under oath, and will lead to the arrest and prosecution of those responsible. The use of police resources and manpower in investigating these cases can be better utilised to investigate genuine cases.”
Naicker said false cases affect police statistics, which were used to plan crime prevention operations.
He said police hoped Naidoo’s sentence would serve as a deterrent.
Daily News