Two pensioners have been arrested on charges of fraud, theft and contravention of the Social Assistance Act after receiving Sassa grant money while being sole directors of companies that were awarded tender worth alleged millions from the South African Police Service (SAPS).
Salamina Khoza, 68, from Soshanguve, was listed a sole director of three companies that scored tenders worth more than R60 million.
Singamoney Sarathomoney Devi, 67, from Centurion, is sole director of KJP Traders which scored tenders worth R80 million from the police service.
Singamoney was arrested on Wednesday morning while Khoza was summoned to appear in court, having been arrested on a similar charge.
The two suspects face charges of perjury, fraud, theft and contravening the Social Assistance Act for receiving the grant for indigent elderly people while serving as the sole directors of businesses that were awarded tenders worth millions, according to Sindiswa Seboka, the Investigating Directorate spokesperson.
When they applied for the old-age grant, they failed to declare that they were sole directors of businesses, or that they had contracts with SAPS worth more than R140 million, Seboka explained.
According to Seboka, Singamoney is accused of having defrauded SASSA more than R123 000 and Khoza more than R152 000.
“She [Singamoney] was arrested this morning, while Khoza was summoned to appear as she was previously arrested on similar charges,” Seboka said.
Seboka said, on 13 April 2017, Singamoney applied to Sassa, stating that she had never worked for a period of 20 years. Her application was approved, and she started receiving her grant money from the agency.
Seboka said: “Prior to submitting her application to the Department of Social Development in Gauteng, Singamoney submitted a similar application in KwaZulu-Natal, and her application was denied.
“Although she is listed as the director of KJP Traders Pyt and Matthew Pillay (her son), KJP is alleged to have conducted business with the state as early as 2012, preceding her application to Sassa. Furthermore, the company is estimated to have cashed in over R80 million from SAPS furniture contract.”
Seboka said Khoza on the other hand applied to Sassa on 14 September 2014, stating that she had no steady source of income and that she was surviving on R400 per month through selling perishables. Sassa approved her application a week later.
Source: News24, IOL, The Citizen, Daily Maverick, Times Live, image from Twitter: @KarenELotter