A 52-year-old former attorney has been summoned to appear in the Sasolburg Magistrates’ Court, to answer to charges arising from alleged fraud and contempt of court. The hearing against the suspect is set for 7 April.
WO Fikiswa Matoti, Free State spokesperson of the Hawks, said the summons was served to the suspect yesterday (13/03). She said the charges include contravention of the Legal Practice Act, contempt of court as well as fraud relating to R21 000.
The case emanates from a complaint by a client and the suspect’s failure to comply with a court order. The client reportedly paid the suspect R21 000 for legal representation in his divorce matter.
Matoti said according to information received, the complainant reportedly approached the suspect in 2019 for legal representation on his divorce matter. She said the suspect failed to inform the complainant that he was disbarred in 2018 and thus not eligible to practice as an attorney.
“In 2021, the complainant learnt that the suspect was disbarred in 2018 and he opened a case against the suspect. The contempt of court charge relates to the suspect’s failure to comply with the court order to hand over the files to the curator after being disbarred,” said Matoti. She said the alleged fraud matter against the suspect was reported to the Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation team based in Welkom for investigation.
