A 37-year-old man who was employed as an administration clerk at a North West primary school between 2019 and 2020 has been sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to 170 counts of fraud involving more than R1 million.
Ofentse Molemane was sentenced by the Specialised Commercial Crime Court sitting in Rustenburg after pleading guilty to all 170 counts.
In October 2024, IOL reported that Molemane was employed as an administration assistant in the Department of Education’s Bojanala District Services at the Rustenburg Area Office, based at Sunrise View Primary School.
He was assigned secretarial and office administrative duties.
Molemane also acted as a financial officer for the school governing body (SGB) and was one of the signatories to the school’s bank account, allowing him to undertake transactions solely for the school’s benefit.
Between January 2019 and March 2020, Molemane transferred funds from the school’s bank account into his personal account.
In March 2020, he also transferred money from the school’s account to his girlfriend’s account on six occasions.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) previously said the total amount transferred between 2019 and 2020 exceeded R1 million.
The NPA in the North West welcomed Molemane’s sentencing.
NPA communications officer Lindiwe Mabasa said Molemane orchestrated a scheme to unlawfully enrich himself by misappropriating funds intended for the school’s operations during his employment.
“He pleaded guilty to all 170 counts of fraud.”
Mabasa said during sentencing proceedings, State Advocate Nkhetheni Mudau argued that Molemane had carefully planned and executed the fraudulent scheme by repeatedly transferring school funds into his personal bank account and paying himself amounts to which he was not entitled.
“The State further submitted that Molemane created fictitious invoices, falsely claiming that they had been issued by service providers who had rendered services to the school, to conceal his criminal conduct,” Mabasa said.
