Police flag down traffic cop and driving instructor for corruption

An Eastern Cape traffic cop and a driving school instructor have been hauled to court for driving licence corruption.

Traffic officer Luthando Alex Jaza, 51, and driving school instructor Luvuyo Stamper, 30, were arrested during a sting operation in Qonce on Thursday.

They appeared in the King William's Town magistrate's court on Friday. Provincial police spokesperson Brig Tembinkosi Kinana said the arrests followed complaints about corrupt activities at the King William’s Town traffic department.

Kinana said learner's and driver's licence examiners were allegedly in cahoots with the driving school instructor.

“The middleman would identify clients and offered them assistance in terms of obtaining learners' licences without having to complete the test,” said Kinana.

“It is further alleged that this process would be completed by the examiner, who is the traffic officer, and the client is then declared competent and subsequently issued with a learner’s licence.”

Police applied for permission to conduct an undercover operation and observed a client obtaining a learner's licence “by paying a gratification of R1,500 to the driving school instructor”, said Kinana.

“After entering the exam room the client agent was instructed by the examiner not to write anything on the paper, but to hand in an empty script with only personal details and the test was then completed by the traffic officer. The client was then declared competent and later received the learner’s licence.”

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