A financial advisor – who can’t be named to protect her 10-year-old child – has been jailed for 12 years for stealing R1,2 million from the estate of a dead friend.
The 52-year-old woman who was a financial advisor for Accredinet appeared this week in the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court, where she was sentenced.
She had pleaded guilty to the charge of theft on 15 December 2021 before she was convicted.
Prosecutor Advocate Ilse Grobler persuaded the court to order the concealment of the identity of the accused, saying this would prevent secondary victimisation of her 10-year-old child.
The child will have to be moved from her home because her only surviving parent has been sent to jail.
Evidence before the court was that in January 2018 the financial advisor met Idalette de Witt’s sister, who is now deceased.
In December of 2018 De Witt’s sister passed away.
De Witt was aware the accused and the deceased were friends.
She asked the accused to be an executor of her deceased sister’s estate.
From February 2019 to March 2020 the financial advisor received the funds due to the estate of the deceased.
The accused moved the money from the estate bank account into her own account and spent some of it on a vacation and a lavish 21st birthday party for her son.
From over R1.8 million she received from the estate she paid few credits and few beneficiaries and took R1.2 million for herself.
Matters came to a head when the deceased’s car, which had been inherited by De Witt, was repossessed over outstanding payments.
De Witt – a beneficiary of the estate – reported the matter to the authorities.
Apart from failing to pay for the car, the accused had also failed to pay other credits, which was supposed to be paid by the estate.
During her arguments in aggravation of sentence, Prosecutor Grobler said the accused took advantage of her friendship with the deceased and of a vulnerable woman who had just lost a sister to finance her lavish lifestyle.
De Witt in her Victim Impact Statement to the social worker’s report said the offence had a financial, health and emotional impact on her because she had to hire a lawyer again to assist her finalise her sister’s estate.
“The NPA [National Prosecution Authority] welcomes the sentence of 12 years direct imprisonment for theft of R1,2 million,” said Lumka Mahanjana, NPA Regional Spokesperson Gauteng Division: Pretoria.
The Director Public Prosecutions Adv. Sibongile Mzinyathi said that he hopes this sentence will send a strong message that such crimes of theft, corruption, fraud will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted.
