The Commission of Inquiry has issued a warning after multiple impersonation attempts targeting its chairperson, Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga.
Officials say the scams aim to extract personal information and compromise the commission’s integrity.
Commission spokesperson Jeremy Michaels said the impersonation campaign first surfaced during Madlanga’s tenure at the Constitutional Court, prompting the Office of the Chief Justice to issue two public alerts at the time.
But since Madlanga assumed leadership of the Commission, the scheme has escalated dramatically.
According to Michaels, the impersonator or possibly multiple individuals, has been posing as Justice Madlanga to contact private citizens, attorneys, government officials and public bodies.
Using the judge’s name, and even circulating his photographs as WhatsApp profile images, the impostor has issued threats, solicited bribes and attempted to pressure state organs into decisions that contradict their mandates.
“Some communications are calculated to give the impression that the impersonator is the chairperson of the Commission,” Michaels said.
“These communications have the potential to tarnish the chairperson’s standing both personally and in his official capacity.”
The fraudulent approaches have ranged from coercing lawyers involved in litigation to attempting to extort money from individuals and public institutions.
In several cases, the impersonator allegedly threatened legal practitioners unless they adopted directives purportedly issued by Madlanga.
The commission believes the known cases represent only a fraction of the scope of the impersonation scam.
Many victims, particularly those unfamiliar with Madlanga, may not realise they are being misled and therefore fail to report the incidents.
This raises the likelihood that the impersonator may have contacted numerous people, potentially damaging the judge’s reputation on a broader scale.
The Commission has condemned the acts as direct interference with its work and confirmed that the matter has been reported to law enforcement.
Members of the public, state institutions and officials are urged to remain vigilant and to verify any communication purportedly from Justice Madlanga.
Anyone found guilty of impersonating a justice faces a fine or up to six months’ imprisonment.
kamogelo.moichela@iol.co.za
IOL Politics
