Alice: Three suspects linked to a multi-million-rand fraud and money laundering scheme at the University of Fort Hare have been granted bail, the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) said.
According to South African Government News Agency, the three were arrested in a breakthrough against corruption in the education sector by the East London-based Serious Corruption Investigation team. Former Acting Chief Financial Officer Simbongile Geqeza (41), former Head of Investigation and Vetting Isaac Plaartjies (57), and family friend Claudine Davids (44) appeared before the Alice Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday where they faced charges of fraud, money laundering, and corruption.
The arrests follow a detailed investigation by the Serious Corruption Investigation of the Hawks, which uncovered two fraudulent schemes that drained university funds amounting to more than R2 million. The first case dates back to 2 September 2021, when Geqeza allegedly issued a fraudulent instruction to a bank, authorizing an illegal payment of R1.4 million to a company with no legitimate ties to the university. The scheme was exposed when university management noticed financial discrepancies and reported the matter to the Hawks.
During the investigation conducted by the Hawks, a second fraudulent transaction was uncovered, involving a payment of R985,000 to a service provider for investigative services that were never rendered. Furthermore, the service provider allegedly claimed to have assisted the Hawks during the university investigation, even though no services were provided. This payment was allegedly facilitated by Plaartjies in collaboration with the claimant, and the funds were allegedly funneled to Davids.
The suspects were arrested in different parts of the country during a coordinated Hawks operation on 1 April 2025. The court granted each accused bail of R10,000. The case has been postponed to 4 April 2025 for further investigation.