Shields in court over Damelin complaints
The previous owner of Damelin in Middelburg, Mark Shields, has appeared in the Middelburg Magistrates Court on charges of fraud.
On Tuesday, shortly before he was to appear in district courtroom D, Shields tried to settle out of court. According to Freda Kruger, one of the complainants in the matter, Shields offered to pay her back the money he owes her if she withdraws the charge against him. She refused.
The Middelburg Observer reported extensively about the matter in 2013 when distraught students complained that something was amiss at Damelin.
After the first article was published, several students contacted the Middelburg Observer with similar complaints. Some of them managed to open criminal cases, whilst others were shown away because officers on duty at the charge office said it was a civil matter. Police later confirmed that Shields was being investigated. Then all went quiet.
Inside information has it that the lengthy investigation was only recently completed where after Shields was charged late last year.
Shields was appointed campus manager at CTU Training Solutions in Cape Town in October 2014. In his biography on their website, Shields is described as a former franchisee who ran a successful Educor (the parent company of Damelin) campus for many years.
A call to the CTU Cape Town campus confirmed that Shields worked there but left the company on February 12 this year. The reason for his departure is unknown.
