Mbombela (Nelspruit) – At the least 20 individuals have been arrested by elite crime busters – the Hawks – on suspicion that they had been a part of an organised fraud rip-off that stole hundreds of thousands of rand meant for rural colleges in Mpumalanga.
Briefing the media on Sunday, 22 February 2026, head of Mpumalanga’s directorate for precedence crime investigation (the Hawks), Main Common Nicholas Jacobus Gerber, stated they’d been pursuing as much as 40 suspects, together with firm administrators.
He stated of the 20 suspects arrested, 17 had been service suppliers, and the remainder had been officers from the training division.
Main Common Gerber stated three of the suspects within the “organised fraud” involving greater than R100 million had been arrested in Gauteng, Limpopo, and Cape City.
“The quantity concerned is R113 million, and this was then distributed in an intricate internet of cash laundering via the federal government officers and households of those officers that benefited,” Main Common Gerber stated.
“That which was destined for colleges in rural areas was not directed because it ought to, and that’s the reason we’re right here immediately in order that these individuals can account for the misappropriation of those funds.”
The suspects are anticipated to look in court docket on Monday, 23 February 2026.
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