State Secures Preservation Orders Exceeding R4.4 Million Against Former Kathu High School Administrator

Staff Reporter

The Northern Cape Division of the High Court granted Hawks Asset Forfeiture Investigation and National Prosecuting Authority ‘s Asset Forfeiture Unit forfeiture orders of vehicles exceeding combined value of R4.4 million.

The first case involves an accused who previously served as a financial administrator at Kathu High School, accused of embezzling school funds to the tune of R4.6 million rands.

The modus operandi included creating separate private bank accounts where school funds were diverted.

Financial discrepancies were identified in October 2025 when an audit detected irregularities in the school’s financial records.

The stolen funds included normal school fees and donor amounts, which are used to pay School Governing Body (SGB) teachers’ salaries.

The Directorate’s investigation revealed that the accused created fictitious invoices purporting to be legitimate school suppliers and authorised payments that went to her private account and for her benefit.

Allegations are that the accused further paid herself overtime despite the school’s policy prohibiting such payments.

The matter was referred to the Asset Forfeiture Investigation and Asset Forfeiture Unit for further probing.

Preservation orders of six vehicles and caravans belonging to the accused were granted to the state.

In a separate incident, the team acquired a preservation order of two vehicles belonging to a person of interest who deals and transports Sugilite/Wasselite from Johannesburg to Kuruman area.

Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation Provincial Head in the Northern Cape, Major General Steven Mabuela congratulated the teams for their resilience in solving out cases.