Joburg nurse in court for allegedly selling fake Covid-19 negative certificates
A nurse working at Parkhurst Clinic allegedly sold fake Covid-19 negative test certificates for R500 to people wishing to travel to other countries without conducting the actual test and taking blood samples.
Johannesburg - A 28-year-old male nurse in a Joburg public clinic will appear in the Booysens Magistrate’s Court today for fraud and corruption related to the sale of fake Covid-19 negative certificates.
It is alleged that the suspect, who works at the Parkhurst Clinic, sold the fake Covid-19 negative test certificates for R500 to people wishing to travel to other countries without conducting the actual test and taking blood samples.
The city was trying to track all those that may have bought certificates from him.
The Star understands that he had been working for the clinic for two years, having joined in July 2019, and was still new to the health industry.
All that his customers had to do was send him an ID number and, after a day or two, the client would receive a message from the laboratory indicating that he/she had tested negative for Covid-19.
He would then give them a certificate for R500. Preliminary investigations have revealed that he was not working alone.
More suspects at the clinic and the National Health Laboratory Services were expected to be nabbed as the investigation continued.
Joburg Group Forensic and Investigation Service’s spokesperson Lucky Sindane said the suspect was closely monitored for over a week and was arrested during a sting operation which was led by Joburg mayor Jolidee Matongo, the service and the Joburg metro police.
“We received an enquiry from the SABC’s special assignment about this activity. This was followed by more enquiries from members of the public. We then set up a sting where we bought the certificate. This was followed by an arrest of the individual at his home in Kenilworth on Saturday night.
“The suspect is obviously not working alone since he worked from the public clinic, and had accomplices at the laboratory,” Sindane said, adding that more charges as defined by the Disaster Management Act may be added to the initial charge of fraud.
Matongo described the incident as unfortunate. “We don’t need such people in our system. We would like to encourage our staff not to engage in such corrupt activities because it compromises the whole country.
“Imagine someone has contracted Covid-19 and are given a certificate that says they are negative; that person will infect many people and some will succumb to the virus,” Matongo said.
The SA Medical Association said it was shocked by the arrest.
Assocation spokesperson Angelique Coetzee said the actions of the health worker compromised the national plan to deal with the pandemic.
The Star
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