CAPE TOWN - The seven suspects who were arrested by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) for allegedly defrauding the State were granted bail in the Leeu Gamka Magistrate’s Court.
According to the provincial spokesperson for the Hawks, Zinzi Hani, the suspects were nabbed by the Serious Corruption Investigation Unit during its probe into allegations of corruption, fraud and theft committed by Emergency Medical Services (EMS) officials in the Prince Albert area.
Prince Albert is a town at the foot of the Swartberg Mountains.
The suspects included three petrol attendants and four EMS personnel.
The group were arrested on Wednesday by the Hawks’ Serious Corruption Investigation Unit and are aged between 30 and 43.
EMS officials Jason Jacobs, Bradley Maans, Tiaan Brown and Vuyani Molatana were each granted bail of R5 000.
While the three petrol attendants Dina Nimmerhout, Heinrich van der Ross and Enrico Pretorius were granted R2 000 bail each.
The group were granted bail by the court with strict conditions.
They are expected back in court on March 17, 2022.
It is alleged that the EMS personnel worked hand in hand with the petrol attendants to defraud the state by utilising petrol cards on fictitious transactions.
Hani said the report stated that the suspects allegedly waited for motorists who would pay cash for their fuel, and in turn, swipe the state fuel cards in return for the cash.