The Pretoria Magistrate’s Court issued a warrant for the arrest of Doctor Abel Diokana, one of the man accused of allegedly defrauding the Department of Labour’s (DoL) Compensation Fund (CF) after his “no show” in Court today 25 September 2012.
Magistrate Mariette Louw issued the warrant for the immediate ‘tracing’ of Diokana so as to expedite the matter before the Court, following a presentation made by Diokana’s legal that ‘he received a call from Diokana’s niece who informed him that he was ill and had to be admitted at a Mahikeng hospital’.
Diokana is one of seven alleged fraud accused who include: Maxwell Ramaphosa, Samuel Mfeleng, Kgabo Methi, Debbie Venter, Tendani Mukomafhedzi and Billy Ramskin (all former employees of DoL’s employees) who are allegedly accused of defrauding the DoL’s Compensation Fund.
The “group of seven” faces four counts of fraud and two counts of money laundering amounting to R949 175, 11. The accused are out on a warning and are yet to plead.
Louw postponed the case to October 24.
Working as a syndicate, the six former employees of the DoL’s CF are alleged to have connived and recruited Diokana to submit his practice number and banking details for fraudulent pay outs to be made to him from CF. The seven are alleged to have siphoned the departments of Labour by channelling the fraudulently claimed funds into Diokana’s personal account and that of his Driving School business to disguise the location thereof.
In papers before the Court it is alleged that Diokana did not render any service to any of the patients/claims submitted. Diokana, it is further alleged would later withdraw some of the money and transfer it over to his fellow alleged co-accused. The accused would allegedly contact each other to meet at a specific location to share the money.
The seven accused first appeared last year at the Pretoria Specialised Crime Court. The case was December 12 transferred to the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court. It has been characterised by a number of numerous postponements ranging from accused not having legal representatives, to lawyers failing to show up at Court.
Accused number one and two (Ramaphosa and Mfeleng) are also intertwined in two other alleged cases of defrauding the Department of Labour. In the first case, they are accused of defrauding the Department of Labour R2, 1 million. They are out on a bail of R3000.
In the second case, they are part of a quartet including a physiotherapist. In this case they are alleged to have defrauded the department R467 150, 58. In this matter they are out on a warning.
The Compensation Fund is a public entity under the authority of Department of Labour. The Fund exist to act as a cover for workers injured during work, illness and death resulting sustained during occupation.
Enquiries:
Page Boikanyo
Cell: 082 809 3195
Warrant of arrest for ‘absent’ Doctor accused of allegedly defrauding the Department of Labour Compensation Fund
