Gospel star Dr Tumi and wife charged with fraud, granted R3K bail

The Gospel world has been left in shock following the arrest of musician Dr Tumi, real name Tumisang Victor Makweya, and his wife Kgaogelo Sara Makweya.

The Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation team in Johannesburg arrested the couple following allegations of fraud to the tune of approximately R1.5 million on Tuesday.

The couple have been released on bail of R3 000 each and their two co-accused of R5 000 each.

According to Hawks spokesperson Captain Ndivhuwo Mulamu, the suspects were allegedly listed as committee members at a non-profit organisation, and allegedly submitted altered grant application documents to the National Lotteries Board for approval of funds on projects in 2018.

“Further investigation revealed that the couple together with their co-accused… Chistopher Tshivule, 46, and Thomas Ndadza, 48, allegedly altered information on the documents submitted to the National Lotteries in September 2018, which resulted to the amount of over R1.5 million being transferred into a private bank account,” Mulamu said.

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“The couple allegedly benefitted approximately R760 000 from the funds. They handed themselves in at the Johannesburg office escorted by their attorney and were subsequently charged for fraud,” said Mulamu.

The couple appeared in the Palm Ridge Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Tuesday and the case was postponed to 7 May 2021 for docket disclosure.

The award-winning musician has been trending on social media as his fans jumped to his defence, arguing there is more to the story.

In February, the musician made headlines after being paid R500 000 by the Gauteng department of sports, arts, culture and recreation for organising a two-hour virtual concert.

Again, fans came to his defence on social media and the hashtag #HandsOffDrTumi trended as a result.

ALSO READ: R500K ‘way too little’, says Ndlozi on Dr Tumi’s concert

In response, the department confirmed that Dr Tumi was contracted for a variety of services in preparation for a live television concert.

It entailed a full production and performances by the country’s most renowned artists, including Benjamin Dube and Lebo Sekgobela.

The department clarified the R500 000 was not directly paid to the artist.

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