‘Bogus’ Mpumalanga lawyer arrested

The man allegedly deceived his clients to deposit money into his bank account under the pretence that he will facilitate transfers of Title Deeds.


A 43-year-old self-proclaimed lawyer was sentenced to a five-year jail sentence for the alleged forgery of certificates, reports Mpumalanga News.

Kholisile Zephana Sithebe was found guilty in the Middelburg Regional Court on July 16 and sentenced to a five-year jail term on 12 counts of fraud and forgery of qualifications.

READ MORE: ‘Bogus lawyer’ Brenda Wardle mum on why she’s still not trial-ready

The court further suspended the sentence for five years on condition that Sithebe repays the R154 100 to the complainants before the end of the year.

In March 2011, the accused pretended to be a lawyer and deceived clients to deposit money into his bank account under the pretence that he would facilitate transfers of Title Deeds into their names, which never materialised.

This case was transferred to the Hawks Mpumalanga Serious Commercial Crime Investigation Unit for investigations. Sithebe was arrested in September 2011 following investigations.

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android

Read more on these topics

fraud lawyer Mpumalanga

Access premium news and stories

Access to the top content, vouchers and other member only benefits