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Parents in the small Western Cape town of Swellendam are accused of fraudulently funnelling funds using an account they opened in their daughter’s name when she was nine.

The 46-year-old woman and 47-year-old man were arrested on charges of fraud, theft and money laundering, with the Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crimes unit in Bellville working with the Swellendam detectives to secure the arrest on 16 July.

The mother was released on R1,000 bail, while the father was released on a warning as he was already out on bail on an unrelated charge, per The Citizen.

It is alleged that the father had opened the account in their nine-year-old daughter’s name when he was a senior manager at an agricultural cooperative. He reportedly used the account to redirect funds by changing the account details of suppliers on the company accounting system to replace them with his daughter’s account details.

The funds were allegedly transferred to various other accounts owned by the couple from the account opened in their daughter’s name.

Western Cape police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Siyabulela Vukubi confirmed through information gathered that several transfers were made from 24 December 2010 to 22 July 2022 to the total amount of R13,797,069.

One has to wonder how someone sleeps at night knowing their money is dirty and they could land up in prison any day.

The accused appeared in the Swellendam Magistrate’s Court on 16 July and have applied for legal aid. Their matter has been postponed to 12 August 2024.

Violations of these acts could land a person in prison for up to 30 years. That will put this couple’s daughter somewhere in her late 40s when they are released. What a way to miss a whole life over a couple extra thousand rands a month.

[source:citizen]