Latest news with #ThaboTheletsane
Eyewitness News
a day ago
- Eyewitness News
Parolee (41) denied bail after impersonating former Hawks head Godfrey Lebeya
JOHANNESBURG - A 41-year-old parolee has been denied bail by the Hatfield Magistrates Court in a case of impersonating former Hawks head Godfrey Lebeya. Thabo Theletsane was re-arrested earlier this year and charged with fraud and impersonating a police official. It's alleged that in October 2024, while on parole for another fraud matter, Theletsane contacted a prominent businessman on WhatsApp, claiming his phone had been hacked. Thabo Theletsane told the prominent businessman that an official from the Cybercrime Unit would help clean up his phone if he shared his frequently used contact numbers and paid a fee to fix the hacked phone. While he obtained the contacts, the businessman didn't pay for what the scammer said would be a hard drive to store his information. Theletsane then made contact with another complainant using the phone numbers supplied by the businessman and allegedly scammed him of R50,000 using the same modus operandi. NPA spokesperson for the North Gauteng Division, Lumka Mahanjana, said the matter has been postponed to September for transfer to the Pretoria Magistrates Court. 'In court, he asked to be released on bail, but the state opposed his release on bail and argued that the accused would likely repeat the offence because he allegedly committed this offence a few days later being released on parole.'
IOL News
a day ago
- IOL News
Parolee denied bail for impersonating Hawks boss in fraud case
Thabo Theletsane appeared before the Hatfield Magistrates court on charges of impersonating a police officer. Image: Supplied A parolee was denied bail on Monday after allegedly defrauding businesspeople and impersonating the national head of Hawks, Lieutenant General Godfrey Lebeya. Thabo Enoch Theletsane, 41, faced charges of fraud and impersonation during a hearing at the Hatfield Magistrate's Court. According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Theletsane contacted a prominent businessman via WhatsApp, using a profile picture of Lebeya, the former National Head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI). This incident occurred while he was out on parole, having been released on 24 October 2024 after serving a sentence for previous fraud offences. During the call, he allegedly claimed his phone had been hacked and that the businessman would be contacted by 'Mr. Mokoena,' purportedly a police officer from the cybercrime unit. "Posing as 'Mr. Mokoena,' Theletsane allegedly told the businessman that his phone had been hacked and offered to 'clean' it. He is accused of requesting the businessman's frequently used contact numbers, which he then obtained. The accused allegedly asked the businessman to make a payment for a hard drive to store his information; however, this payment was not made," said the NPA in a statement released on Monday. In a separate incident, Theletsane allegedly contacted another complainant using the numbers supplied by this businessman. He allegedly told the second complainant that their phone had been hacked and requested a payment of R50,000 for a hard drive to store their information. The complainant paid the money. However, after realising they were defrauded, both victims reported the matter to the police a week later, on November 1, 2024. Following an investigation, Theletsane was arrested on May 10, 2025. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading In court, Theletsane requested bail, claiming he had the responsibility to provide for his seven children and another child on the way. He further argued that the parole board had indicated it would reconsider revoking his parole if he were granted bail. However, Prosecutor Dikeledi Moganyaka opposed the bail application, presenting an affidavit from investigating officer Mpho Phantinah Dlamini. The affidavit revealed that Theletsane had deliberately provided a false address during the investigation and had two prior convictions for fraud and forgery from 2020, making him a likely candidate to reoffend if released. In delivering judgment, the magistrate agreed with the State that the accused has a propensity to commit crimes since he is alleged to have committed the current offences just days after being released on parole. The court also found his claims about the parole board to be unsubstantiated and ruled that releasing him would not be in the interest of justice. The matter was postponed to September 2, 2025 for transfer to Court 16 at the Pretoria Magistrate's Court. IOL
The Herald
13-05-2025
- The Herald
Man accused of impersonating Hawks head Godfrey Lebeya in court
A man who allegedly impersonated Hawks head Lt-Gen Godfrey Lebeya appeared before the Hatfield magistrate's court on Monday on a charge of impersonating a police officer. Thabo Theletsane, 42, was arrested on Saturday by the Hawks' national serious corruption investigation unit in Petrus Steyn in the Free State. He is also charged with fraud. In October last year, the accused allegedly contacted a prominent South African businessman residing in Gauteng via WhatsApp falsely claiming to be Lebeya. Using a profile picture and personal details resembling those of Lebeya, the accused allegedly deceived the victim. It is alleged the accused claimed the victim's mobile phone had been hacked and, on the pretext of assisting him with a security breach, requested the victim's personal information. Believing he was communicating with the real national head of the Hawks, the victim provided personal details and contact information of close associates. 'The accused later solicited money, claiming to have successfully 'debugged' the victim's mobile devices. An of more than R100,000 was subsequently paid by the victims,' Hawks spokesperson Brig Thandi Mbambo said. The case was postponed until Thursday for a bail application and the accused was remanded. 'The community is warned against making payments to police officers as they are not authorised to solicit money for services rendered,' Mbambo said. TimesLIVE
