Millions Vanish 

Hawks Swoop on Bojanala Municipal Corruption Scandal

Rustenburg – The halls of justice are buzzing after the arrest of top Bojanala District Municipality officials and a service provider in connection with a multi-million-rand fraud and corruption case. 

Five accused, including a former municipal manager, chief whip, and chief financial officer (CFO), appeared in the Rustenburg Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, 18 March 2025, facing serious charges of fraud, money laundering, and contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act.

The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) confirmed that the accused – Patrick Pogisho Shikwane (53), Leslina Olga Ndlovu (45), Patrick Tlhapi (53), Gontse Kekana (39), and Mantsho Gloria Moremi (38) – were arrested on Monday, 17 March 2025. This follows a thorough investigation into allegations that more than R25 million was fraudulently embezzled from municipal coffers between December 2018 and May 2019.

How the scheme unfolded
According to lieutenant colonel Tinyiko Mathebula, spokesperson for the North West Hawks, the alleged fraud scheme involved the manipulation of municipal payments. It is reported that in 2018, Ndlovu, the former CFO, colluded with an unregistered service provider to process fraudulent payments for services that were either never rendered or exaggerated in value. To facilitate the deception, the details of a registered service provider were misused, with payments channelled into unauthorised bank accounts.

Further investigations revealed that over R2 million was transferred from the service provider’s bank account to a company owned by Ndlovu. In a damning trail of transactions, R150 000 allegedly landed in the personal account of the Chief Whip, while R850 000 was reportedly pocketed by the secretary to the former municipal manager.

Charges and legal proceedings
The accused face a staggering number of charges:

• Shikwane: 53 counts of fraud, 53 counts of money laundering, and one count of contravening the Municipal Finance Management Act.
• Ndlovu: 53 counts of fraud, 53 counts of money laundering, and five counts of corruption.
• Tlhapi: One count of corruption.
• Kekana: Two counts of corruption.
• Moremi: One count of money laundering.

Sivenathi Gunya, the NPA’s communication officer for the North West division, stated that the case has been postponed to Thursday, 20 March 2025, for a formal bail application. Meanwhile, authorities have indicated that the arrest of two additional service providers is imminent.

The acting North West provincial head of the Hawks, brigadier Silas Munzhedzi, and the director of Public Prosecutions in North West, Dr Rachel Makhari, have lauded the joint efforts of law enforcement agencies in tackling corruption. “We are committed to ensuring that those responsible for looting public funds are held accountable,” they emphasised.