MIDDELBURG – The Road Accident Fund (RAF) has vowed not to fold arms as lawyers siphon funds meant for beneficiaries.
“We will not sit back and allow attorneys, medical experts, or anyone else to enrich themselves at the expense of the claimant,” stated RAF Chief Executive Officer, Collins Letsoalo.
The arrest of 42-year-old Middelburg lawyer, Jo-Anne Mantladi Mmela, made headlines for allegedly misappropriating funds intended for a client’s child.
Mmela was apprehended on 20 September 2022 and granted bail the following day. However, she was rearrested on Saturday, 24 February 2024, for failing to appear in court on 5 December 2022, after which she went into hiding.
Facing charges of fraud and theft, Mmela remains in custody following the postponement of her case to 16 April 2024 by the Middelburg Magistrate’s Court.
“We are deeply dismayed by lawyers who engage in dishonest practices and swindle the very individuals they are supposed to assist with claims,” added Letsoalo.
Adding to RAF’s woes, a 33-year-old man from the Vaal was defrauded of R2 million after his 2019 car accident claim was settled.
RAF spokesperson, McIntosh Polela, revealed that over 400 cases have been referred to the police for investigation.
“We have lawyers collaborating with claimants themselves at times to defraud the RAF, and then we have lawyers defrauding claimants,” Polela explained.
“It’s important to understand that once we’ve deposited the money into a trust account, it’s the lawyer who has control over that money, and it’s only the lawyers themselves who would have transferred the money into a decoy account,” Polela emphasized.
