Joburg couple sentenced for R600k TERS fraud
A couple has been sentenced by the Johannesburg Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Tuesday for defrauding the Department of Labour of more than R600 000.
Refilwe Kgaje was handed a 15-year sentence imprisonment for fraud, suspended for five years, while Isaac Phiri was also sentenced to 15 years.
The duo unlawfully submitted the names of 95 employees who were not working for Pusoloso Engineering Services to the Department of Labour.
They then applied to the department, on behalf of the fictitious employees, to benefit from the Temporary Employer/ Employee Relief Scheme (TERS) during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The NPA’s spokesperson in Gauteng Phindi Mjonondwana says this was done under false representation to defraud the Labour Department.
"The department paid an amount of over R600 000 to a bank account which belonged to Phiri. The funds were not due to Phiri for distribution amongst the employees and were not supposed to be deposited into his bank account.
“The accused handed themselves over to the police after one of the employees they used wanted to register for the R350 Covid relief grant, and the system picked that they work for the Pusoloso Engineering Services," said Mjonondwana.
ALSO READ:
