E6.1 MILLION GETBUCKS FRAUD: EX-CFO FACES 13 COUNTS

MBABANE – GetBucks (PTY) Limited’s former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Buhle Madonsela has been slapped with 13 counts.

GetBucks is a financial services provider established in 2014 and has branches in Mbabane, Matsapha, Siteki, Manzini and Nhlangano. It offers credit facilities to salaried individuals in the public and private sectors. GetBucks is a subsidiary of ESW Investment Group Limited. According to the charge sheet, on diverse occasions, Madonsela stole a total sum of E6 170 978. Madonsela made his maiden court appearance at the Mbabane Magistrates Court yesterday, where he was charged with fraud and was remanded in custody until Friday May 31, 2024 .

Shunned

Wearing a green sweater and a pair of grey jeans, Madonsela appeared calm and shunned public attention. He was confined in a separate office upon arrival at the court premises, where he was later joined by his lawyer. He was immediately led to court and the proceedings lasted for about 10 minutes. After court proceedings, Madonsela was seen chatting with his lawyer and those who had come to give him moral support.

It is alleged that while employed as the CFO at the institution, Madondela stole the money which was in the lawful possession of Nonophile Dane. The offence is said to have been committed between 2021 and 2024 at the GetBucks offices in Manzini. He was also charged with 12 counts of uttering, he allegedly committed on different dates using the same modus operandi, which was to utter forged documents.

In the first instance, it is said that Madonsela put off a forged First National Bank statement for the months of January 2023 to Khayelihle Hlophe with intent to defraud GetBucks Eswatini. The offence is said to have occurred at GetBucks offices in Manzini.

It is alleged that Madonsela used the same modus operanding for the whole year of 2023 and January 2024. When he appeared in court, Senior Crown Counsel Chris Sibandze applied that he be remanded in custody until May 31, 2024, pending committal to the High Court. His Lawyer Dumisani Hleta had no objection to the application by the Crown due to the nature of the offence Madonsela is facing.

Madonsela arrived in court and remained behind the building before he proceeded to court in the company of his lawyer and the police officers. His relatives were already in court to give him moral support when he proceeded to the courtroom. He had some time with his lawyer and his relatives before he was taken back to the police station.
One of the female relatives showed a hostile attitude towards photographers who took pictures as Mandonsela boarded the police van.

“Why are you taking the pictures?” asked the relative while trying in vain to block the photographer with her hand. The visibly angry relative joined her other relatives and left immediately after interfering with the photographer’s job. However, Madonsela had not hidden from the cameras until his relative tried to shielded him.

Madonsela’s arrest is subsequent to an interim High Court order that was obtained against him on April 18, 2024. The order interdicted him from disposing of a number of assets, which include two immovable properties - one situated at Woodlands in Mbabane and another at Sibonelo Township at Ngwenya, behind the Galp Filling Station.

Interdicted

The court order also interdicted him from disposing of two motor vehicles; a VW Golf and an Isuzu double cab. The exact amount which Madonsela is alleged to have siphoned from the company is E6 170 978.31. It is alleged that he committed the offence between July 2021 and February 2024. In the application to prevent him from selling the assets, which are believed to have been acquired through the alleged ill-gotten money, the court was informed that Madonsela fraudulently transferred different amounts of money into his personal account held with the First National Bank (FNB).

It is alleged that in one instance, he purportedly transferred to his personal bank account a sum of E173 250.50, which he referenced as withholding tax arrears for the month of July. According to the court documents, on August 6, 2023, Madonsela allegedly transferred to his personal account a sum of E14 000, which he referenced Eswatini Air.

On September 20, 2023, he is alleged to have transferred into his personal account, a sum of E4 751.23, which he allegedly referenced as Invoice 568. It was further alleged that on September 31, 2023, he fraudulently transferred into his account a sum of E16 965.89, which was referenced as a salary advance.  The court documents further stated that on October 24, 2023, he allegedly fraudulently transferred into his personal bank account held with Standard Bank Eswatini a sum of E69 568.55, which was referenced as management salaries.

In another instance, Madonsela allegedly unlawfully transferred the same amount into his personal account which he referenced as management payroll. At the time the application to prevent him from disposing of the assets was moved, the total amount of money Mandonsela was accused of having stolen was E4 million.

The court was told that GetBucks was still awaiting its final audit or forensic report. Civil summons were also issued against him on May 15, 2024, according to a statement. Investigations by the company resulted in disciplinary charges preferred against Madonsela in April 2024. He subsequently resigned on the second day of his disciplinary hearing. Meanwhile, in a statement issued on Wednesday, the company stated that in January 2024, it received, through its whistle-blowing mechanism, information on suspicious transactions.

Unauthorised

“Subsequent internal audit investigations confirmed two unauthorised loan transactions that took place in December 2023 processed by the CFO, which unduly benefitted him in contravention of company’s policy,” it reads in part.
It states that the former CFO was suspended from work in February 2024, pending the finalisation of the investigation into his alleged misconduct. According to the company, preliminary findings identified a number of breaches that warranted that the matter be reported to the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) Commercial Fraud Unit on February 26, 2024.

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: