Man sentenced to four years for impersonating attorney and defrauding client
Doctor Sobetha has been sentenced for impersonating an attorney.
The Bethal Magistrate's Court in Mpumalanga has sentenced a 32-year-old man to four years in prison for impersonating a lawyer and defrauding a client of R40,000.
The sentence, which was handed down on Thursday, includes an option for Doctor Sobetha to pay a fine of R20,000.
Provincial spokesperson, Lieutenant-Colonel Magonseni Nkosi, detailed how Sobetha had perpetrated this scam back in 2019, when he attempted to file a bail application on behalf of a client facing murder charges.
During the court proceedings at that time, Nkosi noted that the state prosecutor quickly became suspicious of Sobetha's arguments. He was requested to prove before the court that indeed he was a legal practitioner but failed to produce such proof.
"The Secunda based Serious Organised Crime Investigation members that were in court attended and an arrest was affected. The matter was referred to the Hawks Secunda based Serious Commercial Crime Investigation for further investigation," said Nkosi.
Sobetha was granted bail in 2024, and then went on the run.
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Man sentenced to four years for impersonating attorney and defrauding client
Doctor Sobetha has been sentenced for impersonating an attorney. The Bethal Magistrate's Court in Mpumalanga has sentenced a 32-year-old man to four years in prison for impersonating a lawyer and defrauding a client of R40,000. The sentence, which was handed down on Thursday, includes an option for Doctor Sobetha to pay a fine of R20,000. Provincial spokesperson, Lieutenant-Colonel Magonseni Nkosi, detailed how Sobetha had perpetrated this scam back in 2019, when he attempted to file a bail application on behalf of a client facing murder charges. During the court proceedings at that time, Nkosi noted that the state prosecutor quickly became suspicious of Sobetha's arguments. He was requested to prove before the court that indeed he was a legal practitioner but failed to produce such proof. "The Secunda based Serious Organised Crime Investigation members that were in court attended and an arrest was affected. The matter was referred to the Hawks Secunda based Serious Commercial Crime Investigation for further investigation," said Nkosi. Sobetha was granted bail in 2024, and then went on the run.
