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The Hawks said that a 34-year-old man appeared in the White River Magistrate's Court in Mpumalanga on Thursday for allegedly impersonating the Police Minister, Bheki Cele, on social media.
Spokesperson, Lieutenant-Colonel Philani Nkwalase, said Zakhele Nkosi, was issued a summons to appear in court last month, following an “in-depth investigation.”
He said the Hawks Serious Commercial Crime investigation team together with their Cyber Crime Investigation Team acted on information that was circulating on social media purporting that the Police Minister will, on the 13 April 2020, announce that liquor shops will open.
Nkwalase said this was regarded as “fake news” as the Minister of Police has no valid social media account, and also a contravention of the Regulations of Disaster Management Act as it was during the hard lockdown.
He said there were approximately 161 Facebook accounts and two Facebook groups purporting to be that of the Minister, carrying a combination of both his name and pictures.
Nkosi is expected to be back in Kanyamazane Magistrate's court on 11 August, and more arrests are expected as the investigation continues.
Meanwhile, Nkwalase says in a similar matter last year, 25-year-old Mzomusha Hlongwane was also linked to other Facebook accounts and was served with a summons to appear in the Bergville Magistrate's in Kwa-Zulu Natal in September 2021.
He said Hlongwane pleaded guilty to all the charges and was subsequently sentenced to a R1000 fine on a charge of contravening Disaster Regulations and a further R2000 fine following his conviction on a charge of fraud, which was suspended for a period of five years.
