The Hawks provincial spokesperson, Tlangelani Rikhotso, says the 37-year-old, Mohau Shuping, is the caretaker at sports facilities at the municipality. She says Mohau is facing eight similar fraud and theft charges to those faced by Mayor Kgotso Khumalo and his a former acting municipal manager (MM) Cyril Henry. 

The trio is linked to a R5 million fraud case where they have been allegedly accepting money which was intended for the municipality in their accounts.  It's alleged that the North-West University and the Programme for Community Development paid about R5 million into a trust account of an attorney for the use of specific projects by the municipality but the three allegedly stole the money.

The National Prosecuting Authority's (NPA) regional spokesperson, Henry Mamothame, said "the attorney was then given instructions to effect various payments, which include a R208 000 mayoral committee contribution towards the funeral of the late MEC for Agriculture, Duma Ndleleni, who passed away on 23 November 2018.

"It was, however, discovered that R200 000 was paid directly into the account of one of the accused. From this amount, R64 218 was paid to an institution where Khumalo’s relative was a student," he adds.

It further alleged that invoices were falsified to effect more fictitious payments and it is alleged that Khumalo instructed the attorney to make a payment to an NGO which did not exist.

Rikhotso says Shuping was also released on warning and also subjected to the same conditions of not setting foot anywhere near the municipality and refraining from making contact with any of the witnesses. "He will join Khumalo and Henry at the Potchefstroom Magistrate's Court on 1 December 2020 for further investigations," she adds.

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