A former security guard at the mall in Waterfall, Midrand, has been convicted of stealing R4m while on duty.
The Alexandra Magistrate’s Court sentenced Bathobile Mlangeni, former security guard, to eight years in prison for theft on March 8. None of the stolen money has been recovered.
Regional National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane said Mlangeni was caught on CCTV cameras leaving the cash depot with black plastic bags full of money.
Mjonondwane said despite Mlangeni name and photograph appearing in the newspapers, the former guard evaded the police for more than two years. “However, on January 6, last year, the Gauteng Flying Squad arrested Mlangeni in Zola, Soweto. She was accused of stealing the cash while she was on duty and disappearing with the money. She told the court that she planned the heist with a co-worker,” said Mjonondwane.
According to Mlangeni, during court proceedings, she and her co-worker knew that while on the job, there would be a cash surplus. They decided to hide some cash in a plastic bag. After her shift, Mlangeni fetched the money. “At some point, while she was on the run, her brother called her to tell her to hand herself in, but she decided to give him her share of R2m and has not seen her brother since. A day after giving the cash to her brother, Mlangeni was arrested.”
Mlangeni was unable to provide information on the whereabouts of the stolen money or her brother.
She was caught at 82-year-old Vangille Dlamini’s house in Soweto, where she had been staying. Gogo Dlamini stated she had no idea she was harbouring a criminal until the police came knocking at her door.
Dlamini was friends with Mlangeni’s grandmother and was happy when she moved in with her.
Dlamini added that Mlangeni did not live a lavish life while staying with her. She explained that the former security guard barely had clothes and would often ask her for R5 or R10 to buy airtime.
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