Eastern Cape secretary Margaretha Voogt, 47, was sentenced last week to 15 years in prison for defrauding the Road Accident Fund (RAF) of more than R11 million.
Magistrate Twanette Olivier convicted Voogt on 30 counts of theft and 22 counts of money laundering.
Olivier said Voogt, who worked for an auditing firm when she committed the crime in 2017, manipulated invoices submitted by service providers by changing account numbers and replacing them with those of her choosing.
Olivier said Voogt, who worked for an auditing firm when she committed the crime in 2017, manipulated invoices submitted by service providers by changing account numbers and replacing them with those of her choosing.
The court found that Voogt transferred R1.4 million to her husband, Alec Voogt, R2 million to her daughter Seana Jane Voogt, R1.6 million to her mother, Maria Theresa Coetzee, R430 000 to her stepdaughter, Kirstie Leigh Voogt, and R187 000 to her sister-in-law, Bernadette van Eeden.
Voogt had told the court during the trial that she used her husband and other family members in the theft by transferring the monies to their accounts, but that they were unaware it was stolen money, and therefore she took all the blame. Following her statement, the National Prosecuting Authority dropped charges against her family members.
According to News24, Voogt claimed that she gambled all the money away, but maintained that she did not steal to feed her gambling addiction.
Olivier said Voogt had had ample time to reflect and think twice before committing the crime, but was inspired by greed.
The magistrate added that, if left unchecked or allowed to go unpunished, the offences of dishonesty would pose a severe threat to the economy.
‘The court, as well as the Constitution, views these offences of dishonesty in an extremely serious light. These crimes of dishonesty erode moral values and could create a culture of dishonesty,’ Olivier said.
According to a TimesLive report, the fraud came to light when auditing firm Moore Stephens, where Voogt was employed, reported the matter to the Hawks’ serious commercial crime investigation team in East London after receiving complaints from intended beneficiaries. Voogt was arrested in 2019.