One of a larger group who ran a scam netting R300,000 to go to jail was a Limpopo woman who recruited 15 people to lie about living with disabilities.Angelina Morongwe, 45, recruited people to lie about having physical disabilities to receive grants from the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa).
Limpopo Woman Had People Pretend To Be Disabled In R300k Sassa Scam
According to Hawks spokesperson Capt Matimba Maluleke, Morongwe was a middleman in the syndicate that also involved three Sassa officials from Tzaneen.
what Maluleke said
“The accused conspired with three officials to recruit people from local communities to apply for disability grants even though they were not disabled,
Grant applicants were not required to undergo a medical examination by a doctor, which is a requirement.A Sassa official processed the applications and paid the money to the beneficiaries after recruiting members of the public.
Beneficiaries would give the first payment to officials, who would share it with the accused. As a result of these fraudulent activities, the department has lost R300,000.
Morongwe was sentenced to five years in prison by the Polokwane specialised commercial crimes court. From September, the other accused, including the 15 who lied about living with disabilities and the officials, will stand trial.
This is the second conviction in the Tzaneen region this year for Sassa fraud.
A specialised commercial crimes court in Giyani sentenced two former Sassa officials, Solani Agnes Baloyi, 56, and Jacob Manamela, 64, for fraud involving disability grants.
According to Maluleke, the accused, who were stationed at Tzaneen Sassa offices, recruited unemployed people to apply for disability grants while they were not disabled.In that case, the department lost R600,000.
