Latest news with #Matoti
The South African
13-06-2025
- The South African
Lawyer entrusted with R6 million set to appear in court for fraud
A practising attorney, entrusted with about R6 million, is set to appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrates Court. She faces numerous charges, including fraud, theft, contravention of the Attorneys Act, and money laundering. The 47-year-old lawyer was allegedly entrusted with the R6 million in cash from an estate. Warrant Officer, Fikiswa Matoti, says the Hawks' Serious Commercial Crime Investigation in Bloemfontein served the attorney with a summons. 'This amount was supposed to be held in a trust account on behalf of the complainant, but it was kept in the suspect's personal account. This resulted in the complainant losing about R3,4 million,' said Matoti. According to SAPS, it was also discovered that the lawyer was practising without a fidelity fund certificate as required. A criminal case docket was registered and handed to the Hawks for further investigation, which led to the arrest of the suspect. Earlier this year, a 35-year-old attorney was also arrested by Hawks. The lawyer allegedly aided a person to escape police custody in Limpopo. Spokesperson, Warrant Officer Lethunya Mmuroa said the first suspect was arrested for theft of a motor vehicle. 'He was handcuffed, and while police officials were busy with the arrangements to take the suspect to the police station, his attorney took him to his vehicle (attorney's car) and drove away at high speed.' Provincial head of the Hawks in Limpopo, Major General Gopz Govender, welcomed the arrest of the attorney. He also strongly warned against interfering with official police duties.] Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 11. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news
The South African
10-06-2025
- The South African
Former Sibanye Stillwater Mine employee nabbed for fraud
A 40-year-old former employee of Sibanye Stillwater Mine, has been arrested by the Free State Hawks on allegations of fraud. The Welkom Hawks reported that the suspect was initially subpoenaed by the Serious Commercial Crime Investigation on 8 June 2025. 'He has been secured before court to answer to a charge of fraud,' said Free State Hawks spokesperson, Warrant Officer Fikiswa Matoti. According to Matoti, during the period of April 2021 and May 2021, the suspect allegedly committed fraud at the time. She said he allegedly used legitimate documents of one of the mine's service providers to create fraudulent quotations. The fake quotes allegedly cost Sibanye Stillwater Mine a loss of over R1 million. Matoti said this loss caused the mine to investigate what had happened to the funds and the investigation was assigned to a specific department. 'His fraudulent activities came to the attention of the Fraud and Corruption Unit of Sibanye Stillwater Mine,' said Matoti. Matoti said once the mine's Fraud and Corruption Unit had concluded their investigation, a criminal case was registered and referred to the Hawks Serious Commercial Crime Investigation in Welkom for a further probe. She said the prima facie evidence collected by the unit was enough to convince the court to issue a summons, which led to the arrest of the suspect. The man is set to make his first court appearance before the Theunissen Magistrates Court, on 22 July 2025. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
IOL News
26-05-2025
- IOL News
Fraudster posing as US government official swindles R100,000 from victim
The suspect is alleged to have used Facebook for his scam. A 29-year-old man who posed as a US government official and swindled almost R100,000 is expected to appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrate's Court on Monday. The man who was arrested by the Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation (known as the Hawks) faces charges of fraud and money laundering. Provincial Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Fikiswa Matoti said the arrest follows an extensive investigation into fraud allegations, including the swindling of R85,800 from an unsuspecting victim in December 2022. 'It is alleged that the complainant was contacted via e-mail by a suspect who introduced himself as a representative of the government of the United States of America. The complainant was promised a Covid-19-related grant on condition that she deposit money into a certain bank account,' Matoti said.
IOL News
26-05-2025
- IOL News
How a Facebook scammer posing as a US official was caught in the Western Cape
The suspect is alleged to have used Facebook for his scam. A 29-year-old man who posed as a US government official and swindled almost R100,000 is expected to appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrate's Court on Monday. The man who was arrested by the Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation (known as the Hawks) faces charges of fraud and money laundering. Provincial Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Fikiswa Matoti said the arrest follows an extensive investigation into fraud allegations, including the swindling of R85,800 from an unsuspecting victim in December 2022. 'It is alleged that the complainant was contacted via e-mail by a suspect who introduced himself as a representative of the government of the United States of America. The complainant was promised a Covid-19-related grant on condition that she deposit money into a certain bank account,' Matoti said.
