Former Limpopo prosecutor jailed for corruption

POLOKWANE – The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has welcomed the sentence handed down to Molatelo Herbert Serumula (46), a former prosecutor from Thohoyandou for corruption.

Serumula reappeared in the Giyani Specialised Commercial Crime Court on June 28 for pre-sentencing after the court found him guilty on a charge of corruption.

The accused was a prosecutor at Morebeng Magistrate’s Court and was arrested on 19 November 2018 after he demanded a bribe from a complainant to squash a docket.

The complainant had been arrested for possession of the suspected stolen property and Serumula told him to pay a bribe of R2 000 for his docket to disappear. The complainant gave him R1 500 and the case was withdrawn. Only after Serumula demanded more money and further requested that he buy him a vehicle, did the complainant report the matter to the Serious Corruption Investigation Unit (Hawks).

Serumula was arrested.

Mashudu Malabi-Dzhangi, the regional spokesperson for the Directors of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in Limpopo, said senior state advocate Mashudu Muliwa argued that Serumula was convicted of a serious offence that brought the NPA into disrepute.

“He accepted R1 500 while he was in the office, undermining the organisation, he said.

Serumula was sentenced to four years’ direct imprisonment.

“As the NPA we hope that his sentence will serve as a deterrent to those who are expected to uphold the law,” Malabi-Dzhangi concluded.