GQEBERHA – A company director, Pumelele Nono (39), appeared before the Gqeberha Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on 28 September in connection with a multi-million rand fraud matter.
According to the Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Ndiphiwe Mhlakuvana, Nono was arrested on the same day in connection with allegations of investment fraud involving over R4.9 million, as well as alleged money laundering. The arrest was carried out by the Gqeberha Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation team.
“The arrest follows a protracted investigation by the Hawks into allegations of fraud, alternatively theft, money laundering, and contraventions of provisions of the Banks Act,” he said. “The accused was granted bail of R10,000 and is expected to return to court on 26 October.”
Mhlakuvana added that it is alleged that between 2023 and 2025, Nono, acting as a director and representative of Khulanathi Black Empowerment (Pty) Ltd and Growing Asset Investment Company (Pty) Ltd, solicited members of the public to invest money with the companies on the representation that the investments would generate substantial profit-sharing returns.
“It is further alleged that Growing Asset Investment Company (Pty) Ltd was registered as a Financial Services Provider (FSP), while Khulanathi Black Empowerment (Pty) Ltd was allegedly not registered as an FSP,” he said.
Mhlakuvana added that, according to the allegations, members of the public were encouraged to entrust substantial sums of money to the entities based on representations regarding anticipated investment profits. “Several investors subsequently deposited funds with the companies.”
When the time came for investors to receive their purported returns, Mhlakuvana said that Nono could not be located.
“This prompted affected investors to report the matter to the Hawks, resulting in an intensive investigation,” he said. “The investigation uncovered evidence that funds received from investors were transferred through various bank accounts and diverted for purposes other than those represented to the investors.”
He added that the total alleged financial prejudice arising from the scheme is estimated at more than R4.9 million. “The investigation remains ongoing.”
The Provincial Head of the Hawks, Major-General Mboiki Obed Ngwenya, applauded the investigating team for the enormous work in ensuring that they left no stone unturned.
ALSO READ: Thirteen, including company director, arrested in R732 000 UIF fraud scheme
