SARS welcomes the arrest of a former official who helped a Rolex smuggler
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has welcomed the arrest of one of its employees who was jailed for seven years. SARS said anyone who broke the law deserved the heaviest sentence as SARS commissioner Edward Kieswetter responded to it. It is widely reported in South Africa that SARS officer, Malatse Kolokoto, was found guilty
SARS welcomes the arrest of a former official who helped a Rolex smuggler
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has welcomed the arrest of one of its employees who was jailed for seven years.
SARS said anyone who broke the law deserved the heaviest sentence as SARS commissioner Edward Kieswetter responded to it.
It is widely reported in South Africa that SARS officer, Malatse Kolokoto, was found guilty after being caught on CCTV accepting a bribe to help an unnamed traveller and the judgement was passed on Thursday.
The SARS official, Kolokoto, tried to help an unidentified traveller to leave South Africa for an international country without properly declaring six expensive Rolex watches.
As the country’s tax authority or collector, SARS, it said the international traveller was arrested by a customs official and the arrest led to Kolokoto being nabbed too.
“Unbeknown to the officer, the CCTV footage caught him accepting a bribe to assist the traveller to circumvent the declaration process, which is contrary to the provisions of Section 15 and Rule 15 of the Customs Act,” SARS said on the arrest.
“The traveller was apprehended by a customs official as he was about to leave on an international flight. He was requested to declare all goods at his disposal whereupon he produced six Rolex wrist watches from his backpack without any declaration form. He was arrested, which later led to the arrest of the accused.”
News24 has it that the SARS staffer, Kolokoto, who was found guilty has been slapped with a hefty sentence of seven years of direct imprisonment by the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court located in Ekurhuleni.
On behalf of SARS, Kieswetter heaped praise on the customs officials for helping to apprehend Kolokoto.
“SARS is placed in a position of trust to ensure that the laws we administer are laws scrupulously and diligently implemented, and anyone who abuses this position of trust, deserves the heaviest sentence,” Kieswetter said.
In its attempts to turn around its operations owing to the state capture, SARS has been working hard to improve revenue collection in the country.
