THE South African Police Service (Saps) yesterday
intercepted 44 undocumented foreign nationals, all suspected to be Zimbabweans,
during an operation, marking the beginning of their festive season blitz.
Eighteen other motorists were arrested and spot fines
amounting to R18 000 raised during the same operation, Saps said in a
statement.
The 44 were arrested separately at a checkpoint outside
Polokwane, the provincial capital of Limpopo province closest to Zimbabwe. An
officer from the Press and liaison officer, Motlafela Mojapelo said the Limpopo
Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Nneke Ledwaba was part of the
operation on the N1 highway, leading to Zimbabwe during which several motorists
were netted.
“The operation was composed of different law enforcement
agencies, along the N1 road, a few killometers outside Polokwane. Eighteen
motorists were given spot fines to the total amount of R18 000 for various
traffic violations,” he said.
Thousands of Zimbabweans are heading home for the festive
season and police in that country maintain heavy presence on the road to
Zimbabwe.
It is believed more that three million Zimbabweans are
resident legally or otherwise in South Africa after fleeing economic hardships
that have haunted Zimbabwe for more than 18 years.
“The operation commenced at 5am. This is part of the
ongoing festive season operations taking place across the province,” Mojapelo
said. “These kind of operations and related activities will henceforth be the
daily occurrence to ensure travellers, the community and tourists are safe on
the roads,” he said.
Apart from searching motorists, police also distributed
pamphlets on crime prevention and safety tips for motorists, he said. He said
the arrested foreign nationals and other suspects would have their cases
processed accordingly. Newsday
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