Trial of Sassa fraud accused starts in July
The accused’s new legal representative requested a postponement to study court transcripts.
A 70-year-old woman’s fraud case has been postponed to July 22 for trial at the Pretoria North Regional Court.
Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC) spokesperson Henry Mamothame said Salamina Khoza appeared on March 12 facing several charges.
The charges are for the Contravention of the Social Assistance Act, Contravention of the Justice of Peace and Commissioners Oaths Act, fraud and theft.
“These charges relate to approximately R152 000 which she received from the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) as a pension payout. [This was] while she was a director of three companies which received contracts from the SAPS, valued at over R60-million between September 2014 and August 2022.”
According to NPA’s statement in 2022, it was alleged that the elderly woman applied for the grant in September 2014, which was approved at least a week later on the basis that she was only scraping out a living by selling perishable goods.
Mamothame said her companies are also a subject of criminal proceedings in various courts, wherein she is charged with others accused of corruption relating to alleged irregular tenders within the SAPS.
In another incident, the IDAC said the case against 69-year-old Devi Sigamoney was postponed to March 20 for arguments after she filed for leave to appeal her 10 years direct imprisonment.
“Her new legal representative requested for a postponement in order to study all the court transcripts.”
He said the sentence was imposed after she was found guilty of defrauding Sassa of pension payouts while she was also a director of a company that received contracts valued at about R88-million from the SAPS.
She received grant money from Sassa from July 2017 to July 2022.
“The state will oppose this application.”
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