More than 20 individuals involved in the R113 million fraud and corruption case at the Mpumalanga Education Department have been remanded in custody by the Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court. The matter was adjourned until Wednesday for bail applications. Only 15 out of 38 arrested suspects have been granted bail so far, ranging from R5 000 to R50 000.
The Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court has remanded more than 20 individuals involved in the fraud and corruption case at the Mpumalanga Education Department in custody. These accused form part of a group of 40 people, including 10 government officials and various service providers, accused of defrauding funds meant for emergency repairs at 21 schools during the 2019-2020 financial year. The fraud amounts to R113 million.
Magistrate Patrick Morris adjourned the case until Wednesday for further bail applications. So far, only 15 of the 38 arrested suspects have been granted bail, with amounts ranging from R5 000 to R50 000.
Defence attorney Advocate Vusi Segodi expressed concerns over delays in the bail process. “After lunch, they took almost 30 minutes for the police to come in. They have to take the prisoners from the service. After that, after the first batch left, they took more than 20 minutes just to bring the present applicants in court. I’m very worried. So we wasted almost an hour,” he said.
The case emerged from investigations by the Hawks, leading to the large-scale arrests in the province.
