…after BMA official’s arrest
…Basotho admit using illegal passport stamping network to avoid losing jobs
Ithabeleng Qhasho
AN alleged passport stamping syndicate operating along the Lesotho-South Africa border has come under renewed scrutiny after South African authorities arrested a Border Management Authority (BMA) official accused of facilitating illegal border crossings for payment.
The arrest has reignited allegations of an organised network involving immigration officials, informal cross-border facilitators known as Lirurubele, taxi marshals and drivers who allegedly arrange for passports to be fraudulently stamped without their owners presenting themselves at border posts.
While the BMA says it has strengthened anti-corruption measures and is cooperating with investigations, transport operators have distanced themselves from the alleged scheme. At the same time, some Basotho living and working in South Africa have admitted resorting to the illegal practice because they fear deportation, job losses and cannot afford the cost of repeatedly travelling to the border.
South African Home Affairs Minister, Dr Leon Schreiber, has welcomed the arrest of the BMA official, describing it as part of an ongoing campaign to root out corruption within the country’s immigration system.
According to a Department of Home Affairs statement issued on 10 July, the official was arrested on 9 July following a joint investigation by the department’s Counter Corruption branch, the South African Police Service’s Crime Intelligence division and the Ladybrand Detectives.
The official is accused of accepting R600 to unlawfully endorse the passport of a Mosotho at the Maseru Port of Entry on 29 June 2026, despite the traveller never presenting herself at the immigration counter as required by law.
The alleged offence only came to light after the woman was arrested by the South African Police Service in an unrelated matter.
Investigators allegedly discovered that payment had been made through intermediaries to facilitate the fraudulent passport endorsement, leading them to the BMA officer suspected of issuing the illegal immigration stamp.
The official has been charged with corruption and appeared before the Ladybrand Magistrates’ Court on 13 July. Investigations are continuing and authorities say further arrests are possible.
“Every corrupt official who undermines the integrity of South Africa’s border management system must know that the net is closing. We are working relentlessly across the Home Affairs ecosystem with our law enforcement partners to ensure that those who abuse the public’s trust are identified, arrested and prosecuted,” Dr Schreiber said.
He added that the South African government would continue its campaign until corruption had been eradicated from every part of the Home Affairs system.
“That is how we will restore the rule of law and build a secure immigration system that serves the interests of South Africans,” he said.
The Lesotho Times asked the BMA whether investigators had identified other officials allegedly involved in the passport stamping scheme and whether any internal disciplinary action had previously been taken against officials at the Maseru Port of Entry over passport fraud.
Responding to the newspaper’s questions, BMA Free State Provincial Manager, Dr Thabo Nkhoma, declined to discuss issues he described as security sensitive.
“Some of your questions are security sensitive and cannot be made public. Safe to say we have put in place measures to ensure the security of our immigration processes, including the introduction of high-security stamps and control measures in August 2025. We have also intensified our anti-corruption efforts, hence we were able to make the recent detection and arrest,” Dr Nkhoma said.
Asked about separate media reports alleging the existence of a broader passport stamping syndicate involving Lirurubele and taxi operators, Dr Nkhoma said the authority could not comment beyond its official statement.
“This is the official Home Affairs/BMA media statement. As for other issues reported on the other media alert, we cannot account for that,” he said.
However, Manyatseng Taxi Association chairperson, Seabata Nkatana, denied that taxi drivers knowingly participated in transporting passports for fraudulent stamping.
“This is the first time I have heard allegations that taxi drivers transport passports to the border. What I know is that they transport passengers who carry passports…,” Mr Nkatana said.
“I cannot account for passports allegedly being carried by taxi drivers because, to my knowledge, a passport is a personal document that should remain in its owner’s possession.”
Nonetheless, information gathered by the Lesotho Times suggests the practice has been taking place for years.
One Mosotho woman, who requested anonymity, said she had lived in South Africa with her parents for several years and attended school there without a study permit. To remain in the country, her passport ought to be stamped every three months.
Because her family could not always afford to travel to the border, they allegedly relied on intermediaries.
“My mother would take my passport to a taxi marshal at the Majakathata taxi rank. He would then give it to a taxi driver with instructions to deliver it to a BMA official. I don’t know who the official was — it was through the taxi marshal’s own connections,” she said.
Several other Basotho interviewed by this newspaper said economic hardship had driven many people to use illegal passport stamping services.
They said employers often refused to grant them time off to travel to the border every three months, while transport costs make regular trips unaffordable.
Others said they risked deportation if their passports were found without the required entry or exit stamps, yet losing their jobs would leave them unable to support their families or even afford transport back to Lesotho.
For many, they said, sending passports through intermediaries had become a desperate means of maintaining their livelihoods despite the obvious legal risks.
