Hawks and SIU Escalate Lottery Fraud Investigation with Kimberley Accounting Firm Raid

In a notable escalation of the ongoing battle against corruption within the National Lotteries Commission (NLC), South Africa's Special Investigating Unit (SIU), in collaboration with the Hawks, recently conducted a raid on a Kimberley accounting firm. This action is a continuation of a persistent inquiry that set off with a significant operation against the NLC's own Kimberley office nearly two years earlier.

Authorized by a warrant from the Kimberley Magistrate’s Court, the raid culminated in the confiscation of laptops and documents believed to be pertinent to the investigation. This assertive move by the SIU follows revelations made by a whistleblower, who alleged that some accountants purposefully abetted non-profit organizations and companies in fabricating the financial documents required for grant applications to the NLC.

These financial statements, which are mandated by the Lotteries Act, are a cornerstone for transparency and accountability in the grant allocation process. Despite this, the whistleblower reported that not only were these statements fraudulently prepared and endorsed by the accounting firm’s directors, but were also submitted to the NLC without any corroborative bank statements.

The ripple effect of fraudulent grant applications reverberates through the raid conducted back in March 2022 when the SIU and Hawks seized computers, hard drives, and a cache of documentation spanning grant issues from 2014 to 2020. GroundUp noted the involvement of several NLC Northern Cape employees, highlighting the home of deputy provincial head Aobakwe Gaobuse and partner Edmond Macatees as a key repository for a trove of NLC documents, linking upper management to the dubious activities.

The recent operation further cements the connection between the deceit uncovered in the NLC's Kimberley office and malpractices within the private sector. Audit firm SkX Protiviti's appointment to dissect the depth of the corruption surfaced multiple incidents where grant applications were not only initiated with forged documents but were also consummated with manifestly distorted financial data.

This series of investigations and raids is demonstrative of a noxious web of misconduct, stretching from offices of the NLC in Kimberley to the private quarters of business complicity. The particular case of an NPO called Thusong Development casts an even darker shadow, where funds for non-existent “online acting classes” were suspiciously transferred to an NLC employee, Gogontle Matseke, further underscoring the level of internal collusion involved.

South Africa's resolve against corruption is mirrored in the SIU's unwavering efforts, as exhibited in their comprehensive report to Parliamentary members, and the relentless pursuit of justice through civil recovery and criminal proceedings.

This kaleidoscope of corruption not only questions the integrity of the entities involved but also casts a long shadow over the very operations meant to safeguard the public's trust in national institutions like the NLC. Today, as the Hawks and SIU delve deeper, rooting out the entrenched fraud becomes paramount to protecting South Africa's philanthropic resources and restoring faith in systems meant to serve the greater good.