The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has welcomed the dismissal of a Mpumalanga Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport official implicated in corruption linked to the procurement of Covid 19 disinfection services during the National State of Disaster. Jacob Bandile Ngcobo, who served as a State Accountant for Property and Facilities in the department, was dismissed following an SIU investigation that uncovered an unlawful relationship between him and a service provider that secured lucrative government contracts during the pandemic. According…

A Limpopo municipal councillor accused of attempting to bribe a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) investigator was rearrested moments after being granted bail when police executed an outstanding warrant against him in an unrelated theft case. Netshivhumbe Gumani, 34, a councillor at Thulamela Municipality, appeared before the Molopo Magistrate’s Court in Mahikeng on Monday on charges relating to the alleged attempted bribery of an SIU investigator. The court granted him bail of R10,000 and postponed the matter to 18 September 2026.…

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has secured a major legal victory after the Special Tribunal ordered the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) and several other respondents to repay nearly R25 million that was unlawfully diverted from a National Lotteries Commission (NLC) grant intended to support sport development and South Africa’s 2016 Rio Olympic campaign. The Tribunal ruled that the R24.98 million payment made by the NLC to SASCOC was unlawful and set the grant aside, finding that…

A councillor from Limpopo has been arrested after allegedly attempting to bribe a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) investigator with R70,000 to derail an ongoing corruption investigation linked to the Mahikeng Local Municipality in North West. Netshivhumbe Gumani, 44, a serving councillor at Thulamela Local Municipality, was arrested on Thursday in a joint operation involving the SIU, the Hawks and the South African Police Service (SAPS). He is facing a charge of corruption. According to the SIU, Gumani allegedly approached investigators…

A luxury property in Hillcrest, KwaZulu-Natal, has been frozen by the Special Tribunal after investigators linked it to an alleged R9.8 million COVID-19 relief fund fraud involving hundreds of purported employees who may never have existed. The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) announced on Tuesday that it had secured a preservation order preventing the sale, transfer or encumbrance of a property valued at R2.7 million and allegedly purchased with proceeds derived from the abuse of the Unemployment Insurance Fund’s Temporary Employer/Employee…

President Cyril Ramaphosa has authorised a wide-ranging investigation into alleged maladministration and possible unlawful conduct involving training contracts awarded by the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (PSIRA) and the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), with investigators also mandated to recover any financial losses suffered by the State. The investigation will be conducted by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) following the signing of Proclamation 316 of 2026, which grants the anti-corruption body authority to probe the procurement and contracting of training services…

The Polokwane Specialised Commercial Crimes Court has issued a warrant of arrest for Giyani businessman Howard Mashaba after he failed to appear in court for his trial today, 29 May 2026. He reportedly travelled to China on a business trip without the court’s permission. Mashaba, a convicted fraudster with four previous criminal records, faces charges including fraud, theft, three counts of money laundering, and contraventions of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA). The state alleges he fraudulently concluded property…

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has welcomed a Special Tribunal order freezing a luxury property in Gauteng and a farm in the Free State linked to businessman Thapelo Samuel Buthelezi as part of efforts to recover hundreds of millions of rand lost through unlawful emergency medical services contracts. The latest preservation order targets an upmarket property in Meyersdal Nature Estate in Alberton, Gauteng, allegedly linked to Buthelezi. The order prohibits him from selling, transferring, mortgaging or otherwise dealing with the…

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has welcomed a series of arrests, convictions and asset preservation orders linked to fraud in the Unemployment Insurance Fund’s Temporary Employer/Employee Relief Scheme (TERS), with more than R27 million in stolen public funds now either recovered or safeguarded. The developments come as authorities intensify efforts to crack down on widespread corruption linked to COVID-19 relief funding that was meant to support struggling workers and businesses during the pandemic. In the largest case, three suspects appeared…

The Constitutional Court of South Africa has dismissed final attempts by two contractors to overturn findings against them in the controversial R40 million Beitbridge border fence project, bringing a years-long legal battle to a close. In judgments handed down this week, the apex court refused applications for leave to appeal by Profteam CC and Caledon River Properties, trading as Magwa Construction. The companies had sought to challenge earlier rulings declaring their contracts unlawful. The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) said it…