National Director of Public Prosecutions Shamila Batohi has frozen more than R3.2 million held in bank accounts of a man accused of stealing over R8.2m in Lotto winnings.
Qongani Moyo is accused of stealing the millions from a Zimbabwean national who was in the country illegally, but who struck the jackpot but could not claim from the lottery operator because he did not have proper documentation.
According to papers filed at the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg, Emmanuel Mundiya played and won the National Lottery in November 2019 and won over R8.2m.
As a foreign national, Mundiya did not have a South African bank account to receive the funds and requested his friend, Moyo, to receive and deposit the winnings in his bank account.
The agreement was that Moyo would ask Standard Bank, where his account was held, to issue two bank cards to enable Mundiya to access the funds.
Moyo’s bank account had a negative balance of R4.36 and the only credit transaction on that account was an amount of R380 by February 25, 2020.
Batohi told the court that the prize money was not paid over to Mundiya and that he did not receive any of the money in terms of the agreement he reached with Moyo.
The millions were instead paid into Moyo’s bank account on December 5, 2019 and between the following day and March 5, 2020 he had transferred R6m of the R8.2m into another Standard Bank account, also in his name.
In addition, he also transferred R1.8m to the Standard Bank account.
Batohi asked the court for a preservation order which could not be served on Moyo because he absconded, is untraceable and as a result a warrant for his arrest had been issued.
Mundiya laid a charge of fraud and theft against Moyo with the police on March 6, 2020 and he was arrested on March 26 last year and detained by Midrand police and appeared before the Alexandra Magistrate’s Court and was released on bail of R5 000, which was paid by his family.
On Monday, Acting Judge Jaco Pretorius ordered that the remaining money be forfeited by Moyo and directed Mabunda Attorneys to hold the money in its trust account on Mundiya’s behalf.
A warrant of arrest has been issued against Moyo and he also owes his lawyer almost R255 000.
loyiso.sidimba@inl.co.za
POLITICAL BUREAU