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A 45-year-old woman has been handed an eight-year suspended prison sentence after swindling nearly R800 000 from a business in Viljoenskroon, Free State, over several years.
Jacolene Hendricks redirected payments into her personal account and inflated prices to pocket the difference.
Fraud scheme unravelled after clients flagged suspicious payment instructions
Hendricks was sentenced in the Kroonstad Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, 12 March, following her conviction on 75 counts of fraud connected to the financial affairs of the Hansie Muller Besigheidstrust in Viljoenskroon.
According to Warrant Officer Fikiswa Matoti of the South African Police Service, the matter came to light after business clients raised the alarm.
“Some of the business clients indicated that they had been instructed by the accused to deposit payments for goods purchased into a different bank account,” said Matoti.
The irregularities prompted an internal investigation into the trust’s finances. Matoti confirmed that the findings were serious enough to warrant escalation.
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“A case docket was registered and later handed over to the Serious Commercial Crime Investigation Unit in Welkom for further investigation,” she said.
That investigation exposed the full extent of the scheme.
Hendricks had been directing creditors to deposit money owed to the business directly into her personal bank account.
She also inflated the prices of goods and, after receiving the higher payments, transferred only the legitimate portion to the business account while keeping the surplus for herself.
Complainant suffered losses of close to R800 000
The financial damage to the complainant was substantial.
Matoti noted that the scheme resulted in “actual prejudice amounting to approximately R800 000”, a figure reflecting the cumulative impact of redirected payments and inflated pricing over the period under investigation.
Hendricks was served with a summons on 8 August 2024 to appear before the Kroonstad Magistrate’s Court on 29 August 2025.
The court ultimately found her guilty on all 75 counts of fraud on 12 March 2026.
Eight-year sentence suspended in full, but repayment ordered
Despite the scale of the fraud, Hendricks will not be going to prison, at least not immediately.
The court sentenced her to eight years’ imprisonment in terms of Section 276(1)(b) of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977, with the sentence wholly suspended for five years.
Matoti explained the conditions attached to the suspension.
“The sentence is suspended on condition that she is not found guilty of fraud, forgery, uttering, theft or attempted commission of these offences during the period of suspension,” she said.
The court also ordered Hendricks to make monthly restitution payments to the complainant.
She is required to repay R10 000 per month for 60 consecutive months, totalling R600 000, paid directly into the complainant’s account until the full amount is settled.
“Hendricks was not declared unfit to possess a firearm in terms of Section 103(1) of the Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000,” Matoti stated.
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