Woman found guilty of swindling elderly couple
A KIMBERLEY woman has been found guilty of fraud, after swindling an eldery couple out of more than R200 000 under the pretence that she was a registered financial service provider.
Lesley Nieuwenhuizen, 58, was yesterday found guilty of fraud and contravention of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act after convincing the couple to pay R200 000 of their pension money to her with promises of a 10 percent monthly interest on their investment.
However, the couple never received a cent, while Nieuwenhuizen’s bank statements indicated that the money was spent by her personally at, amongst other places, Flamingo Casino and Emperors Palace Casino.
Magistrate Danie Schneider yesterday found Nieuwenhuizen guilty of one count of fraud after she, according to the charge sheet, during May to June, 2009 unlawfully and with the intent to defraud, represented to Martin Luther van Aswegen that she owned an investment company, would be able to invest money on his behalf and assured him that he would earn 10 percent monthly interest on his capital investment.
She then, by means of these misrepresentations, induced Van Aswegen, to his actual prejudice, to accept that the R200 000 he paid into her account was going to be invested on his behalf.
However, she did not legally own an investment company, did not invest the money on behalf of Van Aswegen and used the capital for her own benefit.
Nieuwenhuizen was also found guilty yesterday of contravening the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act, after unlawfully acting as a financial service provider without being issued with a licence in terms of the act.
She was found not guilty of a second charge of fraud, as well as not guilty of one charge of money laundering.
During yesterday’s judgment, Schneider indicated that it was common cause that Van Aswegen and his wife were relatively inexperienced and uninformed about financial issues when Van Aswegen took an early pension from De Beers.
They were looking for advice about investing R238 000. Nieuwenhuizen then told them that she could help invest the money and they made transfers equaling R200 000 into her personal account, trusting her advice.
Scheneider also found that there had been virtually “no movement” on Nieuwenhuizen’s business account (that was opened in 2004), until the transfers from the Van Aswegens.
“After the R200 000 was deposited, the balance on the account drastically dropped, with withdrawals at places like Flamingo Casino and Emperors Palace, that were not normally associated with business accounts, and within two months it was back to a minimal balance amount,” Schneider stated.
After judgment was handed down, Nieuwenhuizen’s legal representative, advocate Willie Els, requested a wholly suspended sentence or, alternatively, a partially suspended sentence.
State prosecutor Isaac Mphela called on the court to impose a sentence of no less than five years’ direct imprisonment, as Nieuwenhuizen “showed no remorse” and “preyed on victims with no financial know-how”.
Sentencing in the matter is expected to be handed down next month.