Image for illustration purposes only.
A 48-year-old traffic officer, Thembisile Yende, has been handed a five-year prison sentence — wholly suspended — after being found guilty of accepting a R50 bribe during an undercover corruption operation in Ermelo.
Yende was arrested in 2022 when the Hawks’ Middelburg-based Serious Corruption Investigation team acted on complaints from motorists who alleged that some traffic officials were soliciting cash in exchange for overlooking traffic offences.
On 30 March 2022, investigators conducted an undercover operation during which a police agent was compelled to pay R50 after failing to display vehicle registration plates. Yende was subsequently arrested and made several court appearances before being sentenced by the Ermelo Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, 09 December 2025.
The sentence was wholly suspended for five years on condition that she does not commit a similar offence during that period.
Mpumalanga Provincial Head of the Hawks, Major General Nico Gerber, said the investigation was handled professionally and emphasised that the conviction should serve as a warning to other law-enforcement officials. He added that while suspended sentences are not the preferred outcome in corruption matters, the DPCI respects the decisions of the courts.