Pretoria: The Polokwane Specialised Commercial Crimes Court has convicted 40-year-old Ngoanametwa Gibson Thobakgale for swindling a Limpopo businessman who had applied for a Department of Education contract.
“Thobakgale was a local taxi driver in 2018. Instead of earning his salary from transporting commuters, he grew greedy and swindled an unsuspecting victim,” said Limpopo provincial spokesperson for the Hawks Captain Matimba Maluleke.
“The victim had applied for a… (contract) that was advertised by the Department of Education to provide security services at schools around Limpopo province. He received a call from someone who claimed to be an official from Department of Education demanding R200 000 gratification in order to award a… (contract) .”
The businessman did verifications and found out that the person calling him was not working for the department. The Hawks’ serious corruption investigation unit was notified and an undercover operation was conducted.
“Thobakgale was arrested in Polokwane at Sasol garage near the N1 North immediately after receiving R10 000 of the R200 000 he had demanded,” said Maluleke.
“The accused was out on bail until he was convicted for fraud and corruption by the Polokwane Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Tuesday, 23 August 2022. Thobakgale is expected back in court on 31 October 2022 for sentencing.”
Last year, the Polokwane Specialised Commercial Crimes Court sentenced a 47-year-old Limpopo woman, Gladys Tsakane Mpipi, to five years’ imprisonment on two counts of fraud amounting to R236 440.
At the time, Limpopo spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Mashudu Malabi-Dzhangi said the court heard that in 2017, Mpipi met her accomplice, known to her as “boss”, when she was a cook in Nirvana.
“The accused (Mpipi) told the court that the Nigerian man befriended her and promised that he would source funds and start a business with her. Later, the unknown boss asked her to open a Standard Bank account on behalf of the company as he did not qualify to open an account because he is Nigerian,” said Malabi-Dzhangi.
“Mpipi indeed opened an account and gave the card and the PIN to her boss. The perpetrator used the accused’s bank account to launder the money which was shared between him and Mpipi,” she said.
Malabi-Dzhangi said Mpipi was arrested at her home in Seshego after the “relentless efforts” of the National Task Team comprising of members of the serious commercial crime investigation unit in Pretoria.
IOL