On Wednesday night 16 June 2010, a Nigerian national was sentenced to three years imprisonment by a magistrate in a World Cup dedicated court for being unlawfully in possession of 30 (thirty) 2010 FIFA World Cup tickets.

The man, Kunle Benjamin, was arrested on Sunday evening in Sunnyside, Pretoria, after a police complaint's vehicle noticed him driving erratically through the streets.

As the suspect was acting suspiciously it was decided to search him and the 30 tickets were discovered.

The police investigating officer checked the tickets with a FIFA ticketing office and it was discovered that they were purchased by two men via the internet and that their addresses could not be verified.

The suspect was taken before a magistrate on Wednesday evening who found that he could not give a satisfactory explanation for being in possession of the tickets. He was convicted on a charge of possessing stolen property and sentenced to three years imprisonment without the option of a fine.

This is yet again an example of the effectiveness of having dedicated teams of detectives to deal with World Cup related offences and dedicated courts, magistrates and prosecutors to speedily process the cases.

Statement issued by Brigadier Sally de Beer, Natjoints, SAPS, June 17 2010

Click here to sign up to receive our free daily headline email newsletter