Hawks in search of property fraudster
The Mpumalanga Hawks are looking for a woman alleged to have sold houses that were not for sale.
Annica van Staden (46) is wanted by the Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation unit for allegedly committing property fraud between 2014 and 2015.
Van Staden’s registered business, Housing First Property, would sell RDP houses, repossessed homes and other private properties that were never for sale.
It is alleged buyers were told to pay the deposits on these houses into Housing First Property’s trust account. Van Staden would not transfer the properties to the buyers’ names although they already took out home loans. She would then move the money to her or her employees’ personal bank accounts.
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Neither Van Staden nor any of her employees were registered with the Estate Agency Affairs Board.
She was arrested in Soweto in August 2019. The case was postponed to November 11 when she was granted bail. A warrant for her arrest was issued after she had failed to show up for her court date.
At this stage, Van Staden’s whereabouts are unknown.
