A senior immigration officer at the Home Affairs’ Pretoria office has been arrested and faces charges of corruption alongside a Pakistani national.

The two men appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate's Court on Monday.

Elisha Matsipa, 43, who is the Assistant Director at the Immigration Office, was arrested on Monday after he allegedly assisted a Pakistani national, Wahdat Hussain, 30, to fraudulently obtain a South African passport, Identity Document and a marriage certificate. Initial investigations have revealed that Matsipa received an amount of R23 000 from Hussain, the Hawks said.

Both men will be staying in the police’s holding cells at least until Monday, July 20, when they will appear in court again for a formal bail application.

“We have a strong case against the two and this shows that our investigating officials were on point throughout the process,” said Acting Head of the Hawks, Major General Mthandazo Ntlemeza. “We also applaud the Home Affairs Department for taking a brave step of isolating even one of their own to root out fraud and corruption within their ranks.”