This Day in History: 23 January 2007
On 23 January 2007 Presley Chweneyagae (22) was arrested near Sunnyside in Pretoria for driving with an allegedly fake Ivorian driver's license. He was released on bail of R2 000.
At the end of February, Chweneyagae, who portrayed a gangster in Gavin Hood's film Tsotsi, pleaded guilty to a charge of fraud when he appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate's Court. He was given a fine of R5000 or six months imprisonment; he opted for the fine.
Chweneyagae won an award for outstanding performance by a lead actor for his role in Tsotsi at the Black Movie Awards in Los Angeles in 2006, heading off competition from established actors like Denzel Washington, Cuba Gooding and Tyrese Gibson. The movie won an Oscar for best foreign film at the 2006 Academy Awards ceremony.