Government official hands himself over to Hawks for FS asbestos corruption

A former government official who was on the run after the Hawks made several arrests in connection with the controversial multimillion-rand asbestos audit project deal in the Free State on Wednesday, has handed himself over.

Hawks’ Warrant Officer Lynda Steyn said at 12pm on Thursday, the former government official who worked at a national department handed himself over to his lawyers in Umhlanga, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.

On Wednesday, the Hawks made several arrests in connection with a 2014 Free State asbestos audit tender worth R255 million.

Olly Mlamleli, the former mayor of the Mangaung metro municipality, was allegedly among those arrested.

Mlamleli’s arrest followed that of Edwin Sodi, who was arrested by the Hawks on Wednesday morning, for his involvement in the asbestos looting scheme. The Hawks also nabbed former head of the department of human settlements in the Free State, Nthimose Mokhesi, and the former director-general of the national department of human settlements, Thabane Zulu.

Steyn said all the persons who were arrested will appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court on Friday.

Seven suspects have been arrested, including senior government officials and businessmen as well as five companies, Hawks spokesperson, Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi said.

“The accused face over 60 charges which include corruption, fraud, money laundering in contravention of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, POCA, as well as contravention of the Public Finance Management Act,” Mulaudzi said.

Mulaudzi said the contract for the asbestos removal project was allegedly awarded through a procurement process that was done in a fraudulent and corrupt manner.

“In addition, certain public officials received gratification from the contracted company and, or an individual amounting to several counts of corruption,” he said.

He said the Free State department of human settlements allegedly created the impression that it had participated in a contract concluded by the Gauteng department of human settlement while the services were not the same as specified in the existing contract and also the price was higher in contravention of Treasury regulations.

“During the period that the department incurred unauthorised, irregular or fruitless and wasteful expenditure worth over R255 million.”

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