However, department spokesperson Shadrack Mashalaba said that sentencing had been postponed to March 28 by the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crime Court because the Asset Forfeiture Unit applied to conduct an inquiry into Sehunoe's asset base and to seize his assets in terms of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act. This needed to be done before Sehunoe was sentenced, Mashalaba said.
Sehunoe pleaded guilty to 15 counts of fraud and 26 counts of money laundering in October. His co-defendants, former civil servants who previously worked for the fund, face separated trials, have not yet pleaded. The three men allegedly made payments from the fund for work that had not been performed. According to Thenewage.co.za, the fund provides compensation to workers who are injured and suffer from diseases contracted during their employment. It also covers people who die from these injuries or diseases.
In a statement, the Department of Labour estimated that Sehunoe faces a minimum of 15 years behind bars. "The fraudster was working in collaboration with alleged fellow co-accused [...] to swindle the Department of Labour millions of rands of public funds by claiming money for treatment to patients that was never done and using schemes to siphon payments into their own accounts. The laundered money was deposited into his [Sehunoe's] driving school [and] maintenance/construction businesses," the statement reads.
Read the full article on http://thenewage.co.za.
Read the full article on www.labour.gov.za.
