Silver Strikers Football Club have uncovered a ticket fraud syndicate involving some of their own supporters, prompting the club to tighten security measures ahead of their CAF Champions League second preliminary round clash against Young Africans (YANGA).

Club Chief Executive Officer Patrick Chimimba revealed that counterfeit tickets were used during their recent home match against Madagascar’s Elgeco Plus FC. Investigations have since established that some members of the club’s supporters committee were involved in the scam.

“We are disappointed to learn that some of our supporters, who are supposed to lead by example, were heavily involved in this malpractice,” Chimimba said. “We didn’t make enough sales during the match against Elgeco Plus FC because of the fake tickets, especially on match day.”

Chimimba added that the club has already rolled out pre-sale tickets for Saturday’s clash against the Tanzanian champions, expressing confidence that improved security features will prevent further fraud.

“Tickets are already on sale at all designated points across the city from Monday to Friday. We have introduced several security features to protect the tickets and this time there will be no room for fraudsters,” he said.

The reigning TNM Super League champions will host Young Africans at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe on Saturday afternoon. The return leg is scheduled for next weekend in Dar es Salaam.

Silver Strikers advanced to this stage after eliminating Elgeco Plus FC of Madagascar on aggregate, following a 1-1 draw in Mauritius and a goalless stalemate in Lilongwe.