The Specialised Commercial Crimes Court sitting in Kimberly in the Northern Cape on Wednesday convicted Patricia Staffa for submitting a fake matric certificate to land a job as a licence testing officer in 2016.
According to National Prosecuting Authority regional spokesperson Mojalefa Senokoatsane, Staffa, who is an official at the Siyathemba local municipality, misrepresented herself in her curriculum vitae and later claimed during an interview that she was in possession of valid school-leaving particulars.
Senokoatsane shared: “Patricia Staffa was successfully appointed by the municipality after the interviews and was later registered with Gene Louw College for a course or training that was to assist her in being a qualified licence testing officer. As part of the enrollment process at the college, the accused was expected to submit a copy of her matric certificate.
“The accused became reluctant when she was told to submit a copy of her qualification as required. The accused forged or manufactured a matric certificate and later presented the fictitious certificate to the head of Gene Louw College. This submission led to the investigation into the authenticity of the accused matric certificate.
“Through the collaboration between Umalusi, the Department of Education, the National Prosecuting Authority, as well as the South African Police Service, the investigation determined that the matric certificate was forged.
“During trial, numerous witnesses, including the officials from Umalusi, the Department of Education, and employees of the municipality were called by the prosecution [team]. The accused elected not to testify or call witnesses during her trial.”
Staffa was found guilty of one charge of fraud and two counts of forgery. She was sentenced to three years imprisonment or a fine of R60 000, and an additional two-year sentence suspended for five years on condition that she is not convicted of fraud, forgery, or theft within that period.
“The accused is expected to pay R2 500 on or before the 7th of each month, starting from 7 December 2022, until the last payment,” said Senokoatsane.
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