According to the provincial Hawks spokesperson, Christopher Singo, a former Head of the Department (HOD) of Human Settlements in Gauteng, a 56-year-old suspect was nabbed in Alberton on Wednesday.

ALSO READ - #AsbestosGate: There was a flagrant breach of Treasury regulations - State

She was nabbed after being linked to the 2014 failed project where money was allegedly looted and laundered by government officials, businessmen, and politicians, among others.

Singo says the 56-year-old fraudulently received an amount of more than R7 million from a service provider. The accused now joins the suspended ANC Secretary-General (SG) Ace Magashule, former MEC Olly Mlamleli, businessman Edwin Sodi, and former provincial HOD Nthimotse Mokhesi. The 56-year-old is set to appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrate's Court on Thursday on charges of fraud, among others.

"It is alleged that during the period of 2014 and 2017, an irregular contract was awarded to a service provider for the eradication of asbestos roofs by the department of Human Settlements, Free State. The suspect, who was the Acting HOD of the Department of Human Settlements in Gauteng, also authorised the same service provider irregularly in Gauteng," Singo adds.

Currently, over 10 suspects - including five companies - have already been arrested in the asbestos case and their case in the Free State High Court is in the pre-trial stage.

Senior Counsel (SC) Nazeer Cassim, representing the State, earlier argued in court that there was a flagrant breach of Treasury regulations when awarding the controversial multimillion project, which was said to eradicate the asbestos roofs of 30 000 households across the province in 2014. Cassim told Judge Soma Naidoo that the Free State Department of Human Settlements in 2014 wrongfully piggybacked on a Gauteng contract without the approval of Treasury. Cassim said several regulations, including the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA), amongst others, were deliberately flouted by the accused in the case.

The accused, in this case, includes Limpopo businessman, Edwin Sodi; former Mangaung Metro Mayor, Olly Mlamleli; the former head of the Free State Department of Human Settlements, Nthimotse Mokhesi; the Director for Supply Chain Management at Human Settlements, Mahlomola John Matlakala; a businessman residing in Johannesburg, Sello Joseph Radebe; a Pretoria businessman, Abel Kgotso Manyeki; the former Director-General for the National Department of Human Settlements, Thabane Wiseman Zulu; and Albertus Venter, who occupied a role in the Free State Premier’s office.

The implicated group is facing more than 70 counts of fraud, theft, attempted theft, corruption, and money laundering. Following their arrests, the suspects were released on bail of R50 000 to R500 000.

ALSO READ: #AsbestosGate case postponed yet again

The Free State High Court Judge, Corné van Zyl, postponed the matter to 23 September 2022 for the continuation of the pre-trial.

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