Brady gets sentenced
Correctional supervision, fine for ex-DA councillor
CONVICTED fraudster former DA councillor Wilma Brady was given a 10-year wholly suspended sentence and 24-month correctional supervision – more than a decade after she committed the crime.
Brady appeared in the Bellville Commercial Crimes Court, where she was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment for fraud, wholly suspended for five years on condition that she does not commit fraud or theft within those five years.
Brady got 24 months’ correctional supervision and a R10000 fine for contravening the Public Finance Management Act.
It was argued that while Brady was a ward councillor and chairperson of the Oostenberg subcouncil of the City in 2006, she set out with intent to defraud, among others, developer company Lelethu and the then MEC for local government and housing, by misrepresenting that she was authorised by the provincial housing department to conclude contracts with developers.
Brady was found guilty on one count of fraud and of contravening the Public Finance Management Act last month. This was for falsely claiming she was acting on behalf of the Western Cape government in appointing Lelethu Properties and Developers to build 33 RDP houses for more than R3million in the Malibu area in Blue Downs in 2006.
Lelethu’s Faizel Davids also took the witness stand again after he presented a tax invoice that he sent to the Western Cape Housing Department in 2009.
“There is the proof. I added 25% interest for three years. I had to fix up the houses again and had to get it enrolled at the National Home Builders Registration Council. That cost me money because I did all the tests. Because I was blacklisted I could not go any further,” he said.
Defence attorney Jerome van der Schyff said most of Davids’ testimony was not proven, labelling it waffle. Brady testified she recognised that she had done wrong by signing a letter dated December 22, 2006, authorising Davids to proceed with the building of the houses. Van der Schyff said they’d be appealing against the sentence.