Edited by Bev Mortimer: A 60 year-old woman appeared in an East London courts yesterday on a charge of perjury after opening a case that she was robbed at gunpoint.
The woman stated in her affidavit she made at Cambridge SAPS on 14 December that she went to Hemingways Mall in East London to pay her rent and was robbed at gunpoint of her money.
However, in a case that would likely make national headlines, the police investigated the crime fully. CCTV footage found no signs of a robbery.
In court the woman was further questioned. It was then discovered there had been no robbery.
Buffalo City District Commissioner, Major General Christopher Wright, issued a stern warning to the public not to report false cases as this diverts critical resources needed for investigation of actual criminal cases. “If anyone is found guilty of perjury, he or she is liable to a fine or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years or both – fine and imprisonment,” Major Gen Wright said.
This was the women’s first offence, but it was not revealed in the police report to the Press whether the woman received a fine, imprisonment, a warning, or whether she will be back in court?
The ghost robbery, just two days before Christmas, has already raised questions on the woman’s motives… maybe she needed the money for her grandchildren’s Christmas presents… But the lesson from the District Commissioner is clear – lying under oath and dishonesty does not pay.
St Francis Chronicle 