Africa-Press – Zambia. The Department of Immigration has dismantled a sophisticated syndicate behind the fraudulent acquisition and production of National Registration Cards (NRCs), leading to the arrest of six suspects, including a former United Party for National Development (UPND) aspirant.
Among those arrested is 42-year-old Brave Nsamba, an Assistant Registration Officer at the Mansa District National Registration Office. Nsamba, who once contested on the UPND ticket in the 2019 Milenge Council Chairperson by-election, is accused of supplying official materials used in the illegal production of NRCs.
Immigration Department Chief Public Relations Officer Namati Nshinka confirmed Nsamba’s arrest, saying he was apprehended on 15th August 2025 in Mansa following an extensive multi-district operation.
According to Mr. Nshinka, Nsamba is believed to have been the main source of blank cards, laminating pouches, and other official materials that were used by the syndicate to issue fraudulent NRCs to foreign nationals in exchange for money.
The crackdown was triggered by the 24th July 2025 arrest of a 23-year-old Kenyan national, Hosea Kiai, in Chipata during a routine compliance check. Kiai was found with a Green NRC belonging to another person. Further investigations led to the arrest of another Kenyan, 57-year-old Moses Mululu, in Mkushi on 6th August, who also attempted to pass as a Zambian citizen using fraudulent identification.
Mululu later implicated 61-year-old Jack Banda of Chipata Compound, Lusaka, as the facilitator of the fake documents. Banda was arrested two days later at Cairo Mall together with 46-year-old Kakoma Nduli.
The investigations then extended to Lusaka, where on 11th August 2025, 53-year-old Ephraim Chiyobeka was apprehended at the Department of National Registration, Passport and Citizenship (DNRPC) Headquarters. A subsequent search of his Makeni Villa residence uncovered a trove of NRC production materials, including over 900 laminating pouches, blank cards, and several already-issued NRCs.
Nsamba’s arrest on 15th August capped the operation, with authorities describing him as the insider who made the illegal production possible.
“All six suspects remain in detention as investigations continue,” Mr. Nshinka said, warning that fraudulent acquisition and production of NRCs are serious offences under Zambian law. He stressed that such crimes compromise the integrity of the country’s national identity system and pose a direct threat to internal security.
Nsamba’s arrest has drawn attention not only because of his government position but also due to his past political involvement, raising questions about how individuals with access to sensitive state materials could exploit their roles for criminal enterprise.
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