Police staff held for fraud

Nine people, six of them employed by the SA police service have been arrested for fraud in Mpumalanga, police said on Saturday.

Spokesperson Captain Leonard Hlathi said the other three have resigned from the police.

He said former Captain Jacobus Basson, 38, Captain Lana Basson, 38. former Inspector Izaak Bester, 39, logistics clerical assistant Zelda Badenhorst, 44, accounting officer Lynette Maria Rossouw, 51, financial clerk Charles Erasmus, 37, provincial supply chain management Inspector Wicky van Wyk, 34, and clerical assistant Riaan Kruger, 35, were arrested for fraud, corruption and theft.

They allegedly defrauded the state of money amounting to over R2,5-million between 2003 and 2007.

Hlathi said the investigation which started in April 2007, revealed that they were involved in the irregular procurement of tender in order to enriched themselves.

He said it was found that they had registered their companies in the SA police database but there were no tangible official files for the companies.

Three of the five companies were found to be bogus.

They all appeared in the Nelspruit magistrate's court on Friday and their case was postponed to June 21.