A former employee of FNB Bank, Mzwakhe Khumalo, has been found guilty of stealing R400,000 from a client’s bank account.
The verdict was delivered by the Gqeberha Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Monday. In addition to fraud, Khumalo was also found guilty of contravening the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA) of 1998 and the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act of 2002.
The case involved the unauthorised access of an investment account belonging to a German national between December 2017 and March 2018.
Two bank employees, including Khumalo, changed the account holder’s contact information, cancelled the existing signing authority, and granted a new signing authority to another member of the syndicate.
The funds were then transferred from the investment account to a cheque account, and an attempt was made to withdraw money. However, the bank placed a hold on the cheque account, preventing further withdrawals.
Further investigation revealed that the syndicate members could not have accessed the account and obtained the necessary information without the assistance of the two bank officials. The German national, who was not in South Africa at the time, discovered the missing R400,000 upon his return and promptly lodged a complaint in March 2018.
Lwando Dingiswayo, Khumalo’s co-accused, had already pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced in March of the previous year. He received a five-year jail term. Khumalo’s sentencing has been postponed until April 29.
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The investigation also revealed that the complainant could have potentially suffered a loss exceeding R4.8 million if further transactions had not been intercepted.
This case serves as a reminder of the importance of safeguarding personal and financial information. Banks and individuals must remain vigilant in preventing unauthorized access and fraudulent activities to protect the interests of their clients.
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