Convicted fraudster Portia Sizani granted bail
Convicted fraudster Portia Sizani was granted bail of R5 000 in the Commercial Crimes Court in Port Elizabeth.
Magistrate Mputhumi Mpofu on Friday found her guilty on 15 counts of fraud and nine of money laundering.
He told the court that Sizani' status has now changed and he wanted her to be kept in custody as he could not release her on a warning.
Sizani has been out on bail since the trial commenced in 2013.
The wife of the former ANC Chief Whip in Parliament, Stone Sizani, currently lives in Germany where her husband is serving as an ambassador.
Her lawyer told the court that both her children were also in Germany.
The State did not oppose bail and it was eventually granted.
She defrauded the Department of Education in the Eastern Cape of over one million rand by offering fake jobs to what Mpofu referred to as "vulnerable people, desperate for work".
Sizani will be sentenced on the 1st of July.
Sizani speaks to the media following the court ruling. She says says the law must take its course but she is happy that the court granted her bail. @AlgoaFMNews pic.twitter.com/XWTEpkAvpB
— Athi Plaatjie (@athi_plaatjie) March 29, 2019