A 28-year-old former bank employee has been arrested by police in South Africa on allegations of stealings millions of rands and donating some of the money to a church.
The suspect was arrested by the Hawks’ serious commercial crime investigation unit for allegedly stealing almost R37 million belonging to a deceased client of First National Bank (FNB).
Hawks spokesperson in Limpopo, Captain Matimba Maluleke, said a total of R36 989 051 was looted from the deceased client. Said Maluleke:
It is alleged that on April 25, the suspect who was an FNB consultant at the Makhado branch, opened the profile of the client who had just died in a vehicle accident a day before (April 24, 2022) without any authorisation.
It is further alleged that the suspect connived with his accomplice to open a new bank account and linked it to the deceased’s account and started spending all the money from the deceased’s account.
Maluleke further revealed that the illegal activities were discovered by the bank, and a case of fraud and theft was opened with the Hawks.
The suspect reportedly tendered his resignation letter with immediate effect after he was quizzed by the bank managers about the matter. Said Maluleke:
During the investigation, it was discovered that some of the stolen money was used to buy expensive cars and donate to a certain church.
The former FNB employee is expected to appear in the Makhado Magistrate’s Court on Monday.