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Woman arrested by Hawks for allegedly stealing R460m lived life of excess

Johannesburg - A 43-year-old woman from Boksburg, arrested by the Hawks for allegedly defrauding a medical equipment company to the tune of over R460m, was seemingly living a life of luxury before she was nabbed.

The suspect was expected to appear at the Johannesburg Specialised Commercial Crime Court on Friday, following her arrest on Wednesday by a team from the Germiston Hawks' Commercial Crime Unit.

Her arrest followed a three-month-long investigation. It is alleged that she duplicated payments by transferring money into her late husband's bank account while working as an accountant at the company she defrauded.

ALSO READ: Gauteng accountant arrested for R460m fraud

Officials "managed to attach 11 luxurious vehicles, motorbikes, seven immovable properties with their furniture and appliances and jewellery", the Hawks said in a statement.

Hawks spokesperson Captain Ndivhuwo Mulamu told TimesLive that the woman worked for multi-national medical equipment supplier Medtronic, based in Midrand, and has been living a high-flying double life for 13 years.

The seized assets and property are believed to be worth millions, with "over R12m" in jewellery alone "emptied from five safes in the house", and three Range Rovers and a Porsche among the vehicles.

'They travelled the world'

"In the one garage we found dozens of expensive luggage, all empty. They travelled the world," an officer involved in the investigation said.

"It looks like they would wake up one morning and just decide to go to Mauritius and take their toothbrush and facecloth only. Then they would come back with this grand luggage filled with expensive stuff."

According to Mulamu, the woman had allegedly been duplicating payments to legitimate clients and service providers, paying money directly into a bank account that belonged to her deceased husband.

The alleged fraud was uncovered after the suspect resigned from the company and the new accountant picked up on the irregularities in the internal accounting system, according to the SABC.

During the investigation, it was uncovered that the woman shared a surname with the holder of the account into which the fraudulent payments were being made.

The suspect is facing charges of fraud, theft, and money laundering.

The investigation is ongoing.

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