5 arrested for COVID-19 UIF fraud

The number of people arrested for the payment of R5.7 million from the COVID-19 UIF relief fund into the bank account of a 25-year-old Pretoria warehouse worker, has now risen to five.

The 25-year-old suspect is said to have gone on a spending after the receiving the cash. He also allegedly transferred some of it to his family and girlfriend’s bank accounts.

The money was meant for about 1 400 workers from labour brokerage firm, CSG Resources.

In the video below, workers relying on COVID-19 UIF relief fund face tough times ahead:

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It is believed the worker fraudulently used CSG’s UIF number and created a profile with his own banking details.

The UIF says the Hawks are investigating numerous accounts linked to the money and have already managed to retrieve around R3.2 million of the stolen funds.

In June, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said it has secured a preservation order at the High Court in Pretoria for more than R3.2 million, which was part of R5.7 million, allocated to CSG Resourcing.

“The assets forfeiture unit was granted a preservation order for R3.2 million in relation to money that was sent by UIF allegedly fraudulently into a bank account of Tshepang Phohole. The money was meant for service provider CSG Resourcing, which is a client services company that pays a number of its clients. So the money went into that account and it was distributed into a number of accounts fraudulently. The assets forfeiture unit and state agencies quickly froze the money and now the money has been preserved by the court,” NPA Spokesperson Sipho Ngwema said.

In the video below, the SABC News scrutinises the UIF temporary relief scheme: 

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