The Hawks’ Commercial Crime Unit members together with the members of the North West Serious Corruption Unit have arrested a 48-year-old former Department of Health employee for 194 charges of fraud, money laundering and forgery and uttering.
The suspect was employed at the Free State Department of Health at the psychiatric hospital attached to Supply Chain Management. It is alleged that the suspect defrauded the Department of R7.8 million through submission of fraudulent procurement applications between 2013 until 2015. He resigned from the Department in April 2016 after hearing that there was an investigation instituted against him.
The Hawks’ intensive investigation led them to North West province where the suspect was arrested on Thursday, 24 August 2017. More arrests are imminent.
The suspect will appear before Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court today, Friday 25 August 2017, facing charges of fraud, money laundering, and forgery and uttering.
In a separate incident, an information was received from FNB Card Fraud Division about a petrol attendant at the Engen Garage on the N1 South in Bloemfontein who was allegedly in possession of a card skimming device and was allegedly skimming bank cards of customers.
The information was followed up by the members of Bloemfontein Commercial Crime Unit and the 28-year-old was arrested with the skimming device in his possession.
The suspect will appear before Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court today, Friday, 25 August 2017 facing changes of fraud.