Funeral parlour director pleads guilty to 192 cases of fraud
The Hawks confirmed that more investigations on other funeral parlours that are not registered with the authorities are underway.
LIMPOPO – Lerato Paul Petla (59) appeared in the Polokwane Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Thursday (October 20), where he pleaded guilty to 192 fraud charges.
Petla is the director of JP Funeral, a funeral parlour in Limpopo that provided clients with funeral services for the past 25 years.
“The Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation unit received a complaint in March that the parlour is being operated without a licence and an intensive investigation ensued,” Captain Matimba Maluleke confirmed in a statement.
On October 12 Petla wa served with a summons to appear in court for allegedly contravening the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act 37 of 2002, which states that a licence is required before a person or body can conduct funeral parlour businesses or carry out relevant services.
The case was postponed to 25 October 2022 for sentencing.
