Department of Home Affairs issues progress report on identity fraud case linked to Chidimma’s mother

by Nomonde Simelane

Following the discovery of potential prima facie evidence that the mother of Miss SA finalist Chidimma Adetshina may have committed fraud and identity theft, the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has issued a progress report detailing what their investigation has uncovered so far.

The initial statement shared by the Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber revealed the startling revelation that a South African mother was the victim of a crime potentially committed by the contestant’s mother whose real name is still unconfirmed. The department also expressed its intention to press charges once the investigation is concluded, which quietened the apparent outrage among the public.

Entertainment commentator Phil  Mphela reported about the progress report on X(formerly Twitter), which revealed that the woman whose identity was stolen has been identified by the department, furthermore, they have been able to identify and locate two out of three officials who are believed to be involved in the case, as one has unfortunately passed on.

Furthermore, the report reveals that the woman whose identity was stolen had registered her birth in the year 1982 in Tshwane, and in 1995 she applied for an ID at Home Affairs and when she went to collect the document, she was alerted that it had been collected in a Johannesburg office she had not applied for. Furthermore, when she gave birth in 2001, she found out that there was a child by the name of Chidimma Vanessa Onwe Adetshina who was registered under her ID number.

She was then issued with a new identity number a few months after the ordeal took place.

The department has also visited the home of the woman whose identity was stolen and confirmed that the information the family shared did in fact correlate with the information contained by the DHA.

Also see: Chidimma Adetshina in the lead to clinch Miss Universe Nigeria title