A 49-year-old South African was fined R3 000 or 10 days in prison for entering Zimbabwe illegally, using forged travel documents, following the expiry of his work permit.

Nico Fourie from Pretoria, who is employed by Africa Super Fuel Company at the Beit Bridge depot, was convicted on his own plea of being guilty of forging a travel document by local magistrate Miss Gloria Takundwa. The prosecutor, Mr Jabulani Mberesi, said on February 5, Fourtie was issued with a notice to leave Zimbabwe by the Department of Immigration, following the expiry of his work permit. His passport was subsequently endorsed and he left the country.

However, the court heard that on April 21, Fourie attempted to enter Zimbabwe at the Beit Bridge Border Post, using his passport from which the endorsed pages had been removed. On presenting his travel document at the counter as part of the immigration formalities, the officer manning the desk discovered the anomaly and denied Fourie entry into Zimbabwe.

Fourie later approached another immigration officer, using a different passport, and he was again refused entry and went back to South Africa.

The court heard that on July 7, Fourie arrived at Beit Bridge Border Post, using the same passport that had a forged Zimbabwean immigration stamp. He falsely declared that he was a transit visitor. The offence was discovered four days later by a local immigration officer, who then tipped off the police, leading to the arrest of Fourie.