A farmer from Fouriesburg and her partner have been sentenced in the Bethlehem Regional Court for assisting illegal immigrants from Lesotho to gain access into South Africa.
Makgauta Modiehi Mofokeng (40) and Thabo Moji (31) appeared in court on Thursday (20/07), upon which they were found guilty and sentenced in relation to charges involving assisting illegal immigrants from Lesotho. They had been charged in 2021.
This follows an intense investigation conducted by the Hawks’ Serious Corruption Investigation unit in Bethlehem, who had discovered that there was a farm near Fouriesburg used as a safe passage for stolen vehicles, as well as Lesotho nationals who did not have passports to cross the border into South Africa.
The illegal immigrants had to pay a specified fee to the farm owner in return for the safety provided.
An investigation in May 2021 lead authorities to the farm of Mofokeng and her live-in partner Moji, where the police found the evidence to charge them for assisting the illegal immigrants.
Mofokeng was sentenced to a fine of R8 000 or eight months’ imprisonment, which was suspended for three years; while Moji, in turn, has been sentenced to a fine of R1 000 or 30 days’ imprisonment, which was suspended for one year.
