Annual Report 2004/05 - Special Investigating Unit

REGIONAL INVESTIGATIONS
had the majority of monies advanced to witnesses by the Witness
Protection Unit returned to him by the coordinator of the trust. A
number of witnesses were interviewed who indicated that they never
received sites, which they had paid for through deductions from their
allowances whilst under the programme.
The properties that were actually allocated to witnesses in the
programme are mostly unsuitable or located in an unfavourable area.
Furthermore, not all properties were wholly leased to the Department.
Only sections of a house had been leased. In other instances, property
addresses appeared to be those of houses, but were found to be
either a unit in a complex or a fl at.
An analysis of houses as per the national lists, compared to provincial
lists and information, revealed possible duplication of payments to
agents and payment in respect of what appears to be non-existent
properties.
The SIU’s forensic audit report found, inter alia:
• a lack of administrative and fi nancial controls relating to vouchers;
• unrecovered witness fee advances;
• loans that were advanced to witnesses for the fi ctitious purchase
of property;
• certain lease agreements that were defective in that they were not
properly signed or completed either by the lessee or by the lessor;
• a lack of compliance with regard to tender procedures;
• proper procedures in the management of witnesses that were
not applied in the areas of the security of witness information,
lack of proper control in the movement of witnesses and property
supervision of witnesses; and
• a lack of a proper asset verifi cation system, which should reflect the
properties under the control of the Witness Protection Unit.
The SIU’s audit revealed 151 properties that had been identified as
having been leased to DoJ&CD and 18 agents that had been targeted
for criminal investigation related to the lease of these properties to
the Department. The criminal cases are pending in court.
Department of Transport
On 26 January 1999 the SIU received a complaint from the MEC of
Transport in KwaZulu-Natal regarding fraudulent reductions in the
tare weight of motor vehicles at the Umbilo licencing bureau. An
audit carried out by DoT revealed that a number of companies and
individuals were involved in the alleged fraudulent reduction in the
tare weight of motor vehicles.
Presidential proclamation R56/2001, published on 2 November 2001,
mandated the SIU to investigate the fraudulent and/or unauthorised
changing of the tare weight of motor vehicles on NaTIS by employees
of DoT, and the subsequent payment of lower motor vehicle licencing
fees.
A total of 156 companies/individuals are under investigation by the
SIU. During December 2002, the provincial DoT handed over a further
29 folios of documents relating to the alleged fraudulent/irregular
reduction of the tare weight of motor vehicles that are alleged to have
occurred at the Verulam Motor Licencing Bureau between November
2001 and May 2002.
Application was made for an extension of Proclamation R56 to
accommodate the investigation into the Verulam licencing bureau.
The extension was received on 4 August 2003. The SIU was therefore
able to assist the Department with the recovery of financial loss. In
addition, the SIU initiated and administered the Admissions of Debt
(AODs) signed between the identified parties and DoT.
Some 108 AODs regarding fraudulent transactions involving the
tare weights of motor vehicles amounting to R3 241 743 in respect
of 188 companies or individuals were signed by various defendants.
The defendants will be monitored until all the AODs are paid up. The
SIU handed outstanding fees (to the value of R769 091) previously
recovered by the SIU over to the MEC of Transport in KwaZulu-Natal
during June 2005.
The SIU and the provincial Commercial Crimes Unit (CCU) of SAPS
in KwaZulu-Natal are working closely together in this investigation.
Furthermore, the SIU cooperates with NPA, SAPS and AFU.
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