Hawks arrest three in R2m fraud scandal at University of Fort Hare

The Hawks in East London arrested three people on Tuesday who were allegedly connected to an extensive fraud and money laundering operation at the University of Fort Hare.

Serious Corruption Investigation team

The accused, former Acting Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Simbongile Geqeza, 41; former Head of Investigation and Vetting Isaac Plaatjies, 57; and family friend Claudine Davids, 44, appeared in the Alice Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.

They all face charges of fraud, money laundering and corruption more than R2 million was allegedly siphoned from the university.

Fort Hare fraudulent transactions exposed

According to the South African Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Department, the investigation uncovered two separate fraudulent schemes orchestrated by the accused.

It said the first incident occurred on 2 September 2021, when Geqeza reportedly issued unauthorised banking instructions that diverted R1.4 million to a company with no legitimate business relationship with the university.

“The fraudulent activity was discovered when university management identified financial irregularities and promptly alerted the Hawks to investigate,” the department said in a statement.

During the investigation, authorities uncovered a second fraudulent transaction involving a payment of R985 000 for investigative services that were never actually provided to the institution.

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False claims and diverted funds

In what appears to be a particularly brazen aspect of the scheme, the service provider reportedly falsely claimed to have assisted the Hawks during their investigation of university affairs, despite providing no such services.

“The investigation revealed that this payment was allegedly facilitated by Plaatjies, working in concert with the claimant, with funds subsequently being channeled to Davids,” explained the department.

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Coordinated arrests and court appearance

The arrests resulted from a coordinated operation conducted by the Hawks on Tuesday.

The trio was apprehended in different locations across South Africa.

They were each was granted bail of R10 000.

The court has scheduled their next appearance for Friday as the investigation continues.

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