WELKOM – The legal processes surrounding a Welkom lawyer never seem to be simple, and in his bail application in the Welkom Magistrates’ Court, there were many twists and turns when the accused himself took to the witness stand and laboriously told the court why he is not a flight risk and should be granted bail.
The formal bail proceedings on Monday, 13 October, lasted for more than three hours and were eventually postponed to 21 and 22 October for witness statements before a bail finding will be made.
R15 million fraud charges
Jan Gysbert Maritz (57) was arrested on Thursday, 9 October, on charges relating to fraud, theft, money laundering, and contraventions of the Legal Practice Act involving some R15 million.
According to a statement from the Directorate for Priority Crimes (Hawks), the charges emanate from a deceased’s estate concerning a tender that was awarded to a security company by the Matjhabeng Municipality worth millions. The municipality had an outstanding amount of over R21 million after the services were rendered. The security company challenged this amount owed in the Free State High Court, and judgement was granted in its favour plus 7% interest since 17 November 2020.
Fraudulent bank account
The amount of over R21 million allegedly included R15 million from a settlement agreement which was allegedly paid into an FNB account provided by Maritz. It was later established during the investigation that the FNB account belonged to a different company of which Maritz was sole director. He then proceeded to pay the deceased’s attorneys R10 million in three transactions.
After Monday’s hearing, he was remanded in custody and spent the night in the Welkom cells pending his transport to Grootvlei prison in Bloemfontein on Tuesday, 14 October, where he is to appear in the Bloemfontein High Court for sentencing in another case. He has been found guilty on 16 charges, including rape.
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