The Bellville Specialised Commercial Crimes Court has convicted a 56-year-old man who transferred hundreds of thousands of rands from his co-business owner’s account, claiming the funds were owed to the South African Revenue Service (Sars).
Coert Knoetze was convicted on charges of fraud and theft on Monday.
Knoetze and the complainant ran a business of exporting vehicles outside South Africa into neighbouring countries from the year 2000.
The complainant’s husband reportedly passed away in 2010, while Knoetze continued with the business of exporting vehicles.
Knoetze then transferred funds to the amount of R320 690 into his own personal account from their business account.
The accused further claimed that the business had owed Sars R500 000.
Hawks spokesperson, Lieutenant-Colonel Siyabulela Vukubi, says investigations however revealed that there was no proof of communication from Sars with regards to the claims he had made.
Knoetze then allegedly changed the ownership of the company to his name without consulting the spouse of the deceased.
Vukubi says: “The matter was reported to the Hawks Serious Corruption Investigation for probing. On 22 January, the accused was found guilty and the matter was remanded.”
Knoetze will return to court today for sentencing.