The Hawks’ ongoing investigation into the defrauding of Standard Bank clients for more than R26 million has yielded two more arrests, increasing the number of suspects to nine. The latest suspects are Michael Sayers (53) and Ashley Michael Youngman (35).
They briefly appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court, yesterday – Thursday (16/02).
The other seven suspects are: Gerald Hleza (32), Boleba Lesale (35), Thoriso Mosikili (35), Kelebogile Thlathlosi (27), Brian Odora (36), Monienemang Odora (37) and Ellen Muhlalo (46). The group was arrested between December 2021 and October 2022. They were granted bail ranging from R800 to R10 000.
Capt. Christopher Singo, Free State spokesperson of the Hawks, said Sayers and Youngman handed themselves over to the elite crime investigating team in Bloemfontein. He said the nine suspects are set to stand trial in the Free State High Court in Bloemfontein on 22 March. The pretrial against the seven took place on 14 December in the Bloemfontein Magistrates Court.
Singo said the investigation revealed that two former employees of the bank, Tlhatlosi and Mmoniemang, allegedly colluded with the other seven accomplices to defraud the bank. Both were working for the bank when the fraud was committed. The money was reportedly swindled from the accounts of three clients in 2021, during November and December.
The Hawks, as the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), have since secured a preservation order for more than R7 million. The order was granted by the Free State High Court in November last year, and this amount is part of the R26 million reportedly lost by the victims.
“Several transfers were then made from the three victims’ accounts without their knowledge,” said Singo. The bank reported the matter to the police after the discovery by its forensic investigators.
Editor’s note: Expresspreviously reported that Youngman appeared in court to face fraud charges, based on information provided by the Hawks. The National Prosecuting Authority has since confirmed that Youngman is facing charges of theft, money laundering (contravention of Section 5 of the Prevention of the Organised Crime Act), possession of illicit proceeds (contravention of Section 6 of Prevention of the Organised Crime Act) and failure to declare certain transactions to the Financial Intelligence Centre. The article has been updated to reflect this.
