Municipality pays R1.4m to the wrong bank account, former worker gets five years
Thabo Mosupa, 45, and his company The Seven One Stop were sentenced in the Bethlehem Commercial Crimes Court after the money meant for COIDA landed in an FNB account linked to his business.
A former employee of the Thabo Mofutsanyana Local Municipality and his company have been sentenced for fraud and money laundering after more than R1.4 million meant for the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA) was paid into a bank account that did not belong to COIDA.
Thabo Mosupa, 45, and The Seven One Stop (Pty) Ltd appeared before the Bethlehem Commercial Crimes Court for sentencing, the Hawks said in a statement. Mosupa was sentenced to an effective five years imprisonment for fraud and money laundering. The company was sentenced to a R700 000 fine, wholly suspended for five years, on condition that it is not convicted of fraud or theft committed during the period of suspension.
The matter dates to 2017, when the municipality made the payment of more than R1.4 million to COIDA. The money was first paid into a Nedbank account but was returned to the municipality after the account was found to be invalid. The municipality then transferred the funds to an FNB account it believed belonged to COIDA.
It was later discovered that the account did not belong to COIDA. The Department of Employment and Labour confirmed that the compensation payment had not been received and gave the municipality the correct banking details, which were for an ABSA account.
The municipality launched an internal investigation, and a criminal case was opened and referred to the Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation in Bethlehem. That investigation found the FNB account into which the more than R1.4 million was transferred was linked to The Seven One Stop (Pty) Ltd, a company owned by Mosupa.
He was arrested and appeared before the Bethlehem Commercial Crimes Court on several occasions until his conviction.
The statement was issued by the Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation (Hawks) and carries the contact details of Warrant Officer Fikiswa Matoti. It is a summary of the case rather than the court record itself.
The source document can be read at https://www.saps.gov.za/newsroom/msspeechdetail.php?nid=72094
