Police seize illegal phones during Fordsburg raid

Police confiscated illegally imported electronic devices worth more than R17 million in Fordsburg, Johannesburg.

According to police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Amanda van Wyk, the goods included Apple iPhones, Samsung Galaxy phones, cell phone accessories, and two-way radios.

Van Wyk said the raid was conducted by a multidisciplinary team including the SAPS Commercial Crime Investigation Unit, Border Policing, the Johannesburg Local Criminal Record Centre (LCRC) and the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA).

CRACK DOWN ON ILLEGAL IMPORT

She said the raid was part of efforts to clamp down on the illegal import and sale of non-type approved electronic devices in the country.

“A non-type approved cell phone is any device that has not been certified by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA),” said van Wyk in a statement on Friday.

Police confiscated more than a thousand devices in contravention of the Customs and Excise Act and the Electronic Communications Act (ECA).

Section 35 of the Electronic Communications Act prohibits the sale, lease, or use of any electronic communications equipment that has not been approved by ICASA, she said.

All confiscated items have since been transported to ICASA’s storage facility for safekeeping and further analysis. 

An investigation is ongoing.