VBS fraud case hits snag on first day of trial
Documents to proceed not received
The first case of municipal officials implicated in the VBS scandal to go on trial hit a snag yesterday due to the defence lawyers saying they have not received the documentation to proceed.
The trial of Charlotte Ngobeni, a former municipal manager at the Collins Chabane local municipality in Limpopo, and Eddie Makamu, a former CFO at the same council, is expected to set the ball rolling on criminal prosecutions of state officials involved in the bank scandal.
The duo appeared briefly in the high court sitting in the Palm Ridge magistrate’s court.
Ngobeni and Makamu were involved in making the municipality deposit R120m into the VBS. They both face two counts of contravention of the Municipal Financial Management Act. Ngobeni further faces four counts of corruption.
According to the NPA’s indictment, the municipality adopted an investment and cash management policy, effective June 2 2017, that restricted it to placing deposits with banks registered in terms of the Banks Act, which did not include VBS.
But on October 23 2017, the duo made an interest-bearing fixed deposit of R120m at VBS for a period of three months.
Ngobeni then enjoyed benefits which flowed from the illegal deposit.
NPA spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said there are five other cases involving municipal officials enrolled in different courts in Gauteng, North West and Polokwane. “There are still a number of municipal matters under investigation of which further info cannot be disclosed at present.”
On October 28 2017, another VBS accused, Kabelo Matsepe, a director of a company called Moshate Investment Group and a former ANC Youth League leader in Limpopo, paid over R51,000 for Ngobeni’s accommodation, meals, drinks, and spa treatments at a boutique hotel in Morningside.
“On 31 October 2017, a credit facility in the amount of R1.38m was made available… for the acquisition by accused 1 of a Range Rover Velar 3.0 DSE motor vehicle, which facility had been declined by VBS on the grounds that accused 1 could not afford the repayments and had an inadequate credit score,” the indictment read.
Matsepe also purchased a Tag Heuer ladies wristwatch at the Mall of Africa for R28,500 for Ngobeni.
VBS failed to repay the deposit of R120m together with accumulated interest to the local municipality.
A report by advocate Terry Motau, titled The Great Bank Heist, found that executives at both VBS Bank and its majority shareholder, Vele Investments, devised a plan to defraud the bank. A total of R2.3bn was looted.
In March 2018, the SA Reserve Bank placed VBS under curatorship. Anoosh Rooplal, the curator, said the recovery of money is still ongoing.