EC High Court imposes tougher sentence on errant policeman

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 The Eastern Cape High Court has overturned the effective seven year sentence imposed on a policeman from Alice who pleaded guilty to charges of corruption, fraud and defeating the ends of justice.

Instead, Grahamstown high court judges, Clive Plaskett and Jannie Ecksteen, upheld the state's appeal and imposed an effective sentence of 15 years.

The state had appealed the effective seven year sentence imposed on former Alice police veteran, Andre' Boschoff, by the PE Commercial Crimes Court on the basis of the court's failure to impose the minimum prescribed sentence in respect of the three fraud charges that Boschoff pleaded guilty to.

The court heard that Boschoff had registered a person as an informer, stole firearms from the police and them planted them in or near the homes of innocent people.

He would then claim to have received information from the informer, located the fire-arm and claim the rewards on offer.

Court documents reveal that Boschoff would require the informer to pay him the lion's share of the money.

The judgement was handed down in the Grahamstown High Court on Friday.