South African police have arrested three individuals accused of forging marriage documents to help foreign nationals obtain South African citizenship.
The arrests were made on Monday following a raid on a building in Durban, where officers seized application forms, copies of IDs, and other evidence.
Police say one of the suspects was caught trying to destroy some documents during the operation.
Authorities believe the IDs used in the alleged scheme were stolen from local women without their knowledge.
The fraudulent IDs were then used to create marriage certificates and visas for foreigners.
“When they come, they come as a married man to a South African woman. When they are here, they will divorce that woman,” said regional police spokesperson Col. Robert Netshiunda, speaking to News24.
“By that time, they got citizenship and brought more people. That’s the scam they were [allegedly] running.”
The number of people involved in the scheme and the origin of the alleged clients remain unclear.
Police are now analyzing computers and hard drives seized from the scene to gather further evidence.
The operation was reportedly run from an unassuming building on a suburban road in Durban, described as a “clandestine home affairs office” by Col. Netshiunda in an interview with SABC.
“They were facilitating marriages, visas, and other services that Home Affairs would provide to South Africans,” he said.
Police suspect the operation may have involved an insider within the Department of Home Affairs, whom they have identified but not yet arrested.
South Africa’s strong economy has long attracted job seekers and migrants from across Africa and smaller numbers from Europe and Asia.
However, in recent years, the country has seen anti-immigration protests and incidents of violence targeted at immigrants.
Immigration also became a focal point in May’s general elections, with political groups such as the Patriotic Alliance, now part of South Africa’s coalition government, accused of fueling xenophobia.
