Former Home Affairs employee, Dawn Celeste Pieterson (45), has been convicted on nine counts of insurance fraud. She took advantage of her access to the National Population Registry (NPR) in the most despicable way, reports The Citizen.
The ruling in the Calvinia Magistrate’s Court in the Northern Cape was delivered last week. As such, the judge was appalled to hear how the former Home Affairs employee manipulated personal information for her benefit. According to a Hawks press release, Pieterson ran riot between February 2019 and September 2022 …
HOME AFFAIRS EMPLOYEE CONVICTED
When she was still a Home Affairs employee in Calvinia, she flagged several citizens as deceased on the NPR. And then took funeral policies out on their name, nominating herself as the primary beneficiary. Before collecting a healthy payout on behalf of the still-living residents.
Accordingly, she was found guilty on nine counts of fraud. These pertain to sections 99, 103, and 224 of the Criminal Procedure Act of 1977. Likewise, two counts of contravention of Section 31 of the Birth and Death Registration Act 51 of 1992, confirm the Hawks.
FICTITIOUS DEATHS
“The former Home Affairs employee took funeral cover on unsuspecting victims from reputable insurance companies. She nominated herself as sole beneficiary. And then manipulated the NPR by falsely issuing BI-1663 notice-of-death forms,” explained Hawks spokesperson Lieutenant, Colonel Tebogo Thebe.
Sadly, this was no victimless crime. The actions of the errant Home Affairs employee resulted in a plethora of problems in the day-to-day lives of the victims. They were unable to undertake even the simplest tasks like opening banks accounts or applying for SASSA grants.
WARNING TO ANY HOME AFFAIRS EMPLOYEE
Since taking over in May 2025, Home Affairs Minister Dr. Leon Schreiber has been on a mission to clean house. Accordingly, more than 38 Home Affairs employees have been convicted for various offences. Eight of them have been convicted and sentenced to prison terms ranging between four and 18 years.
“I would like to thank the diligent officials, including those involved in accelerating disciplinary processes. You are all playing a critical role in our work to clean up Home Affairs. And I repeat my warning to anyone involved in corruption. The days of defrauding this department are over,” concluded Dr. Schreiber.
