A director of a funeral undertaker company, Tondani Merylyn Netshakhuma has pleaded guilty and was sentenced on two counts of fraud by the Giyani Specialised Commercial Crime Court in Limpopo.
The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, also known as the Hawks, said during September 2022, the 48-year-old woman refused to pay her clients’ claims for funeral benefits.
“She informed them that policy had changed and the company does only burials and was no longer paying clients. The matter was reported and an investigation was launched. The investigation established that the director had failed to register the company with the underwriter,” said Warrant Officer Lethunya Mmuroa, Limpopo spokesperson for the Hawks.
A case docket of fraud was opened at Thohoyandou police station, and it was later transferred to the Polokwane-based Hawks serious commercial crime unit for further investigation.
The accused was then traced, arrested, and taken to court.
Following the trial, Mmuroa said Netshakhuma was sentenced six years imprisonment or a fine of R50,000. Additionally, the woman was sentenced to three years in jail, or a fine of R10,000.
She was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.
Meanwhile, provincial head of the Hawks in Limpopo, Major General Gopz Govender has welcomed the conviction and sentencing of Netshakhuma.
On Monday, IOL reported that a Limpopo-based psychologist, 41-year-old Penelope Homu appeared before the Giyani Specialised Commercial Crime Court facing charges of fraud.
“She pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a fine of R120,000 or five years imprisonment. She was further declared unfit to possess a firearm,” said Mmuroa.
In 2021, Platinum Health Medical Scheme (PHMS) noticed a spike in claims for the period from February 2, 2020 to December 18, 2020.
Mmuroa said an internal investigation was conducted, and it was established that the claims were submitted by a health care practitioner, Homu.
“During the above-mentioned period, the PHMS received more complaints from their members regarding claims submitted by the health care practitioner without their knowledge or concerns as they did not receive any health care services,” said Mmuroa.
“During analysis of the claims, the medical scheme found more anomalies such as claims for multiple beneficiaries and multiple referring practices.”
It was further discovered that Homu had not rendered any services to the medical scheme members or their dependants as she had claimed, based on falsified information.
Forensic investigators revealed that the PHMS members suffered a loss of R192,000 and the medical scheme suffered a loss amounting to R555,000 which was paid to Homu.
IOL