Lottery-funded NPO was empty, director convicted of R700,000 fraud
Nathan Baldwin Ramailane, 62, and his Kimberley organisation Heseqwa Caring Network took R700,000 from the National Lottery Commission for a charity that was not operating.
A Kimberley court has convicted a 62-year-old director of fraud and money laundering after a National Lottery Commission grant of R700,000 went to an organisation that was not in operation, the Hawks said.
Nathan Baldwin Ramailane was convicted in the Kimberley Serious Commercial Crimes Court on one count of fraud and two counts of money laundering. He was charged alongside his organisation, Heseqwa Caring Network.
The Hawks, the Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation, said the organisation had submitted a request for funding to the National Lottery Commission. The application was approved to the tune of R700,000 and paid to the charitable organisation.
As part of its monitoring processes, the NLC requested a progress report. That was followed by a visit to the organisation’s premises. The organisation was found not to be in operation. A suspected fraudulent report signed by the directors was sent to NLC officials to mislead them that the NPO was in operation.
The NLC instituted an internal investigation into the matter and laid a complaint with the Hawks Serious Commercial Crimes Investigating unit in Kimberley. The actual loss suffered is R700,000 caused by the conduct of the accused, the Hawks said.
Investigation revealed the funds were used to purchase a motor vehicle which was later used for personal reasons by the director.
Ramailane will be sentenced on 8 December 2026 by the Kimberley Serious Commercial Crimes Court.
“We are hoping for a good sentence that will send the message that crimes committed using NGO/NPO’s will not be tolerated,” said the Provincial Head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation in the Northern Cape, Major General Stephen Mabuela.
The statement was issued by South African Police Service (SAPS) Lieutenant Colonel Tebogo Thebe. The source document is a media statement summarising the matter, not the court record itself. The canonical source is available at https://www.saps.gov.za/newsroom/msspeechdetail.php?nid=71853.
