The finance clerk of the court, who was employed by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (DJCD) and stationed at the Barberton Magistrate’s Court, has been found guilty by the court. He now has to wash his seniors’ cars, do gardening and cleaning.
According to Barberton Times’ sister publication, Lowvelder, Ian Maseko appeared in the Nelspruit Regional Court on Thursday December 4 and was found guilty of cheating DJCD out of R1 325 780. The magistrate, Venesse Joubert preceded Maseko’s sentencing by elaborating on his deliberate endeavour to enrich himself.
“The department relied on your honesty and uprightness daily and you chose to break that trust. Had you not been ousted by a whistle-blower, you would have continued with your behaviour,” said Joubert. The newspaper had previously reported on a series of stories about Maseko. The departmental investigation for an alleged sum of R250 000 that went missing from the court started last June.
It was alleged that the money he stole included among others, maintenance, bail, admission of guilt and traffic fines. As an admission-of-guilt finance clerk of the court, Maseko’s responsibilities included collecting money from Periodic Magistrate’s courts in Malalane, Komatipoort and Low’s Creek. These courts sit on selected days and their payments are captured at the Barberton Magistrate’s Court.
After an investigation was instituted against Maseko, he was departmentally charged for fraud and the sanction for the disciplinary hearing for dismissal was served on August 30. He never lodged an appeal and was subsequently dismissed.
A criminal case was opened against him and was investigated by the commercial crimes unit.
He was sentenced to a suspended period of eight years in prison and ordered to repay the indebted amount to the department in instalments of
R3 000 per month, the first of which would be due on February 7. He also received three years’ correctional supervision and had to perform 16 hours’ community services per month. Maseko’s pension benefits had been forfeited.
Meanwhile, another employee, Judith Mantombi Mavuso, who worked as a senior administration court clerk was sacked last August for allegedly stealing R38 700.
