Equal Zitha and Kamogelo Makua are believed to have been linked to fraudulent cases in the province dating from November 2018 to March 2020, defrauding Wesbank, according to a statement issued by the police.

The suspects are currently on bail and are expected to reappear in court on September 7.

In February this year, OFM News reported that the Hawks in the Free State closed in on a three-year-long investigation of suspects - which included members of the well-known Crouch family in Bloemfontein - where they allegedly unlawfully and fraudulently created payslips, thereby robbing banks of more than R 6.6 million.

Zitha and Makua were arrested initially on 21 July 2020 in Phola, Mpumalanga for fraudulent deals that were committed on 20 July 2020 at a car dealership in Klerksdorp.

The February and current arrests seem to follow a pattern whereby suspects make use of fake payslips to apply for vehicle financing from various banks across the country.

The case involving the well-known Bloemfontein Crouch family has since been postponed to 26 August 2020, according to NPA spokesperson Phaladi Shuping.

OFM News