Police in Gauteng have arrested more than 40 illegal immigrants and seized thousands of counterfeit sim cards following raid at a Sandton property on Friday.
South African Police Service (SAPS) provincial spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Mavela Masondo, said the raid was carried out by officers from the Gauteng Organised Crime Investigation Unit.
Masondo said police received information about a house in Sandton, where criminal activities were taking place.
"The members of Gauteng Organised Crime Investigation Unit operationalised the information and pounced on the house. Upon arrival, they found more than 40 suspected illegal immigrants aged between 17 and 36-years-old," he said.
Police were then led to a garage and a back room where they found thousands of sim cards from all South African mobile cellphone networks, as well as a substantial number of computers.
"It is suspected that all the sim cards are manufactured from the premises. Technicians from some of the mobile cellphone networks were called to the scene where they confirmed that the sim cards were imitations," Masondo said.
He said 43 suspected illegal immigrants and two South Africans were arrested. They are facing charges that include the Contravention of Cyber Crime Act, Fraud, and illegal immigrants.
Masondo indicated that police could make more arrests, pending further investigation.
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