Alleged attempt to bribe Hawks lands Uthukela MM in deeper trouble
The accused will appear in court on Tuesday for a bail application.
Uthukela District municipal manager, Langelihle Jili (46), and Bongumenzi Dlamini (26), appeared in the Durban Specialised Commercial Crimes Court today, on charges of corruption.
KZN spokesperson for the Department of Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), Lieutenant Colonel Simphiwe Mhlongo, confirmed that Jili and Dlamini were arrested on Wednesday by Hawks members from the Durban Serious Corruption Investigation Unit.
According to Mhlongo, it is alleged that Jili demanded gratification (a bribe) from a municipal service provider in order to process payment for services that were rendered to the municipality.
“The matter was reported to the Hawks members for intensive investigation and an undercover operation was conducted,” said Mhlongo.
“Jili was arrested after taking R100 000 from the service provider. During his arrest, Jili offered the police officers gratification of R600 000 and he made arrangements for cash to be delivered at the Hawks offices in Durban.”
Mhlongo added that Hawks members followed the proper procedures without hesitation when Dlamini arrived with the cash to pay the bribe Jili had offered to the police, and placed Dlamini under arrest. The R600 000 conveyed by Dlamini was seized and is being kept as an exhibit which will be referred to the Asset Forfeiture Investigation for further handling.
Following a brief court appearance today, Jili and Dlamini were remanded in custody. The case was postponed to October 27 for a formal bail application.
The KwaZulu-Natal Acting Provincial Head, Brigadier Zenobia Mulligan welcomed the arrest of the accused and applauded the members for the good work. “This arrest is a result of the good working relationship between the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation and the National Prosecuting Authority in the province. Our members demonstrated that their integrity is beyond reproach when they further charged the accused for offering a gratification,” she said.
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