Five appear in court over alleged R2.3 million Polokwane water tender fraud
Five people accused of defrauding a company of more than R2.3 million in a municipal water project tender appeared in the Polokwane Magistrate’s Court this week, following an investigation by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks).
According to Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Lethunya Mmuroa, the accused, Unkhonto Maropola, 36, Kgopotso Maopola, 30, Johannes Sathekge, 37, Kgaugelo Malebana, 32, and Kgopotso Mohlake, 35, face charges linked to an alleged fraud involving a Polokwane Local Municipality tender awarded in 2023.
The Hawks arrested the suspects on January 13 and 14, 2026, after they handed themselves over to the Polokwane-based Serious Commercial Crime Investigation unit. They appeared in court on January 15.
Police allege the scheme was orchestrated after Maropola, who had been facilitating the tender process at the municipality, was removed from his responsibilities.
“After being removed from his responsibilities, Maropola allegedly hired an engineer and created fake documents with a company logo,” Mmuroa said.
Investigators further claim that Maropola “appointed himself as a director and opened a new bank account in the company’s name,” before submitting the falsified documents to the municipality.
This allegedly led to “a payment of over R2.3 million into his account.”
The matter came to light when the affected company reported the irregular payment to the Hawks. The subsequent investigation revealed that the money was allegedly distributed among the engineer and directors of various companies who did not render any services.
“The meritorious investigations of the Hawks traced the money,” Mmuroa said.
All five accused were granted bail of R20,000 each. The case was postponed to March 27, 2026, for further proceedings.
The Provincial Head of the Hawks in Limpopo, Major General Gopz Govender, praised the investigating officer for the work done on the case.
IOL News