A high-ranking official of the Dihlabeng Local Municipality is among five suspects who will reappear in court on June 19 to face corruption allegations related to the Fouriesburg pump station upgrade.

Ntokozo Shabalala (41), Mokgeseng Johannes Lesibe (48), Broody Fezile Thoboza (42), Isaac Moreki Mosenohi (36), and Sabata Mofokeng (50) were charged with fraud, forgery, and uttering in the Fouriesburg Magistrates’ Court last Thursday.

According to Free State Hawks spokesperson Christopher Singo, a municipal infrastructure fund was allegedly given to Dihlabeng municipality in 2020 for the upgrade of the pump station.

“It was further reported that Shabalala, the former director of infrastructure and development, appointed the service providers, Pump Group SA, Turbo Tech, Toboza, and Nakeni engineers, without following the tender processes,” Singo adds.

It is claimed that service providers filed bills for services that were never provided. As a result, the municipality was harmed and lost more than R9m in total.

The accused’s case was remanded to Bethlehem Commercial Crimes Court later this month, and they were released on R5 000 bail each.