PRETORIA – South Africa’s Border Management Authority (BMA) has reported nearly 10 000 attempted illegal crossings into the country between April and June this year, with the majority of cases involving nationals from Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Lesotho.
The update came during a performance briefing by BMA Commissioner Michael Masiapato on Sunday, where he disclosed that 9 954 individuals were stopped from entering South Africa during the first quarter of the financial year.
Of the intercepted group, 5 826 were undocumented, 2 127 were deemed inadmissible, and 2 001 were labelled as undesirables. Inadmissibility is typically determined after an interview with an immigration officer and can include reasons such as security concerns or lack of proper documentation.
Since July 2022, border officials have reportedly blocked around 496 600 individuals from entering the country unlawfully.
The briefing also revealed that during the same quarter, 15 high-powered vehicles were intercepted and 349 vehicles recovered before suspects could smuggle them across the border. Authorities also confiscated counterfeit clothing and footwear worth R1 million and discovered 14 passports with fraudulent immigration stamps.
Five unaccompanied minors were handed over to South Africa’s Department of Social Development, while another eight children were denied entry due to missing paperwork.
Meanwhile, in related operations under “Operation Vala Umgodi,” at least 39 foreign nationals were arrested this week alone. Arrests included five men in Barberton caught with illegal mining tools, eight others in possession of explosives and gold-bearing materials, and 26 individuals in the Free State found without valid documents or in possession of forged papers.
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