According to the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation or Hawks in the province, the company subsequently received undue payments amounting to almost R-3-million [R2 950 000.00] for services never rendered. Photo: The Citizen/Jacques Nelles
The case against 14 Mpumalanga licensing officials accused of illegally assisting vehicle owners to avoid payment of vehicle license fees and penalties worth about R60 million has been postponed to February next year.
The accused appeared in the Mbombela Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday following their arrests on separate occasions this year by the Hawks and other law enforcement authorities.
The officials – who worked at various licensing offices in Mpumalanga – face 603 charges of corruption, fraud, theft, and money laundering charges in connection with a vehicle licensing fraud ring that has cost the provincial government more than R60 million in lost revenue.
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They include former administrators who worked at the Department of Community of Safety and Liaison help desk and clerks from registering authorities in Mbombela, Mashishing and Piet Retief.
The accused have all been released on bail of R1500 each.
The allegations are that, between 2018 and 2019, they conspired with motor vehicle owners to defraud the state by writing off vehicle license fees and penalties and accepting payment of part of the applicable fees into their personal bank accounts.
Motorists would then receive vehicle discs that showed that they owed nothing to the state.
Investigations were continuing into the case, with more arrests imminent, the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) said.
The 14 accused officials were expected to reappear in court on 21 February next year.
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