KUGOMPO CITY, Eastern Cape – The East London Serious Commercial Crime Investigation (SCCI), in close collaboration with the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), has secured the conviction and sentencing of Cynthia Nompumelelo Nobangule (69), Vuyolwethu Mashologu (62) and Nomathemba Gwanqana (60), who are former Zwelitsha Magistrate’s Court officials.
According to Hawks spokesperson, Warrant Officer Ndiphiwe Mhlakuvana, the accused were implicated in a long-running and systematic fraud scheme involving the misappropriation of maintenance funds at the Zwelitsha Magistrate’s Cour. They were found guilty and sentenced by the Zwelitsha Regional Court on 30 January. They were convicted and sentenced on all three hundred counts of fraud, which were taken as one.
The court sentenced each one of them to six years’ direct imprisonment, wholly suspended for a period of five years, on condition that they are not convicted of fraud or any offence involving dishonesty during the period of suspension. In addition, the court imposed a compensatory order directing each accused to repay R60,000 to the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development over a period of 36 months.
The court further ruled that any failure to comply with the conditions of the sentence would result in the suspended term of imprisonment being activated, and they were declared unfit to possess firearms.
The accused systematically manipulated maintenance payment schedules, fraudulently reflecting that lawful beneficiaries had received maintenance payments.
“The trio were arrested by a joint team in February 2014, appeared in court and were released on bail. The landmark outcomes follow an extensive forensic and financial investigation initiated after the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development detected material irregularities within the maintenance trust account of Zwelitsha Magistrate’s Court, which had become substantially overdrawn. The anomalies raised immediate concern regarding internal controls, fiduciary compliance, and the safeguarding of funds earmarked for vulnerable maintenance beneficiaries,” said Mhlakuvana.
He added that investigations conclusively established that during the period between April 2003 and July 2004, the accused persons acted either individually or in concert with a common criminal purpose, unlawfully and intentionally defrauding the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development through a calculated abuse of their official positions of trust.
“The accused systematically manipulated maintenance payment schedules, fraudulently reflecting that lawful beneficiaries had received maintenance payments. In addition to the scheme, they appended their signatures in their respective official capacities as checking officers, cashiers, counter clerks and/or sub-accountants, thereby falsely certifying that the payments had been properly verified, approved and lawfully disbursed in the ordinary execution of their duties. The beneficiaries were never paid, and the funds were deliberately diverted and misappropriated by the accused.”
Mhlakuvana added that the total financial prejudice suffered amounted to R240,625, with the offences not only resulting in direct financial loss to the state but also inflicting profound socio-economic harm on maintenance beneficiaries who relied on these funds for basic subsistence. The accused made numerous court appearances until their sentencing by the Zwelitsha Regional Court on 30 January 2026.
