Pic: Siyabonga Sesant
Eight of some of Nelson Mandela Bay’s top honchos will on Friday be dragged to face the music at the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Gqeberha.
They face provisional charges of fraud, money laundering and contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act.
More details are expected to emerge in court regarding the charges that the eight, whose names are known to Algoa FM News, face.
Their identities will be revealed once they’ve appeared in court on Friday.
They include at least two top municipal officials, four politicians and business people.
Two of them opted to hand themselves over at the Humewood police station on Thursday after they could not be located by the Hawks.
The dramatic search for the suspects started early on Thursday in KwaNobuhle in Kariega where curious residents filled the streets to find out what was going on.
Premises in New Brighton and Motherwell were also searched.
Clad in a black leather jacket and olive t-shirt, the sombre-looking high-ranking ANC Nelson Mandela Bay member, who was initially not found at his house, was the first to hand himself over to Humewood police on Thursday afternoon.
Earlier in the day, the man’s family nearly clashed with Hawks officials who swooped on his address in Kariega – insisting he was not home.
The second suspect, who had also initially gone to ground, later on Thursday indicated she would hand herself over to authorities.
Hawks Eastern Cape spokesperson, Captain Yolisa Mgolodela indicated that all eight suspects would be processed at the Humewood police station.
Captain Mgolodela said the possible imminent arrest of a ninth suspect could not be ruled out.
