A self-employed salon and internet café operator based in Piet Retief, Mpumalanga, has been sentenced to an effective six years behind bars for selling fake tertiary qualifications.

Edmond Okechuku, 45, appeared in the Piet Retief Magistrate's Court on Monday for sentencing on charges of fraud, forgery and manufacturing false tertiary qualification certificates.

According to Hawks spokesperson Captain Dineo Lucy Sekgotodi, Okechuku was arrested by the Hawks' Serious Organised Crime Investigation team in Mpumalanga on 16 October 2019 during an intelligence-driven operation after information was received about the sale of fake tertiary certificates.

He was released on bail of R2 000 on 24 October 2019.

During the operation, he was approached by a police agent who needed an N6 Human Resources certificate, for which he charged R1 500. Okechuku pleaded guilty on all charges.

Subsequently, the Piet Retief Magistrate's Court sentenced him to six years' direct imprisonment. He was denied leave to appeal the sentence and declared unfit to possess a firearm.