43-Year-Old Man, Papy Baba Puress Sentenced to 15 Years Direct Imprisonment After 369 Fraud Convictions in SASSA Card Scam Investigated by Post Office and Hawks
Papy Baba Puress (43) was convicted and sentenced by the Johannesburg Magistrates Court on 11 June 2026 for 369 counts of fraud. The case stemmed from irregular transactions linked to SASSA cards identified during a 2020 investigation. The court imposed a custodial sentence after finding him guilty on multiple charges.
The matter originated from a preliminary investigation conducted by a Post Office investigator who detected irregular transactions during 2020. Post Office officials traced and monitored the activity, identifying specific locations where the transactions were taking place. This led to further scrutiny and the development of a case against the accused.
Puress was arrested on 03 June 2020 at a filling station in Cleveland after police were alerted. A search revealed eight South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) cards in his possession. The case was handed over to the Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation team in Pretoria, where 76 cards were later linked and losses exceeding R1 million were established.
The court sentenced Puress to 26 years’ imprisonment for the 369 fraud counts. Some of the counts will run concurrently, resulting in an effective 15 years’ direct imprisonment. The sentencing brings the case to finalisation following the investigation and prosecution process.