A fraudulent funeral plan, wherein the deceased’s date of death was changed to 15 months after her actual passing, backfired on the accused, resulting in their conviction in the Gqeberha regional court on Tuesday.
One of the accomplices gave such damning testimony against herself and her co-accused, that all three had no choice but to change their pleas and admit their part in the attempt to defraud Metropolitan out of R30,000 in 2014.
Phumelela Radu, Mbulelo Victor Manyathi and Mandisa Sibham changed their pleas and admitted guilt before magistrate Hannes Claassen.
They were accordingly found guilty.
Their co-accused, Lucky John Swartbooi, died during the course of the trial.
A fifth man, Sakhumzi Bazi, who according to his co-accused was set to receive the entire R30,000 funeral policy, was never traced by the police.
Manyathi, a former DA councillor, is also implicated in the R24.6m toilet tender fraud matter alongside city manager Noxolo Nqwazi, suspended housing boss Mvuleni Mapu and ANC regional secretary Luyolo Nqakula, who has since stepped aside.
In that matter, the state alleges that Manyathi, along with former DA councillors Trevor Louw and Neville Higgins, received R100,000 for switching sides during the vote of no confidence that saw then-mayor Athol Trollip ousted.
The convictions on Tuesday came after Radu’s earlier testimony left all three accused without much choice other than pleading guilty.
According to state advocate Wilhelm de Villiers, Radu was a “terrible witness” and made submissions that proved common cause between her and her co-accused.
She also admitted to having an intimate relationship with Manyathi.
Following her evidence, Manyathi and Sibham, after consulting with their attorney, Danie Gouws, changed their pleas and admitted to their roles in the matter.
Along with Bazi and Swartbooi, they had falsified documents related to the death of Phindiwe Mzwelitye to claim a funeral policy from Metropolitan to the value of R30,000 in January 2014.
Mzwelitye actually died in October 2012, but her family never received her death certificate.
None of the accused were related to the deceased, she was, however, a family friend of Bazi and Radu.
Manyathi was a manager at the funeral parlour that conducted her burial, Swartbooi was a doctor who assisted with the fraudulent paperwork, and Sibham’s fingerprints appeared on the falsified documents.
The funeral policy never paid out.
Manyathi also admitted to approaching the caretaker at the graveyard where Mzwelitye was buried in an effort to convince him to lie about when the funeral took place.
Following Manyathi and Sibham’s guilty pleas, Radu also had a change of heart, admitting her guilt after consulting with her attorney, Vuyo Ntswahlana.
Claassen said despite the drawn-out nature of the case, which first came to court in 2019, the change in the accused’s pleas showed remorse for their actions and he would take it into consideration during sentencing proceedings.
De Villiers said the state would not ask for direct imprisonment, but suggested that a period of correctional supervision would be a suitable sentence.
The matter was postponed to January 18 for the court to obtain a correctional supervision report.
HeraldLIVE
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.