EFF founding member Katlego Malibe in court for theft

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ACCUSED: Senior EFF member Katleho Malibe is seen here consulting with her lawyer at the Mhala Magistrates court. PICTURE BY PPAC.com

The case against the senior fighter has been postponed to 10 March 2017 to allow her time to consult her lawyer.

Former Mpumalanga EFF provincial command team member and commissar responsible for gender affairs, Katlego Malibe has been in and out of court for the matter which dates back to 2011.

Malibe, who hails from the Bohlabelo region of Mpumalanga and who became one of the fighters who founded the Mpumalanga EFF in mid 2013, is accused of stealing R1.5m from a bank account belonging to a dead FNB customer.

Malibe was a teller at the bank’s branch in Bushbuckridge shopping mall and allegedly had information that the owner of the account had died.

Malibe (L) in the early days of EFF pictured here next to Nkangala regional secretary Lebogang Masemula (R). PICTURE BY MfisoDIGITAL/MM.

The bank discovered this after the husband of the deceased bank customer approached the bank, telling them money had disappeared from his wife’s bank account.

The state alleges that Malibe – who is currently the administrator in provincial leader Collen Sedibe’s office in Mbombela – withdrew this money from the deceased customer’s account between April and May 2011.

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On 21 April 2011 an amount of R450 000 disappeared from the deceased customer’s account and R200 000 on 26 April and another R200 000 on 28 April 2011, allegedly withdrawn by Malibe.

Another amount, R300 000, disappeared on 4 May and another R600 000 on 6 May 2011.

The Mhala Magistrate’s Court in Bushbuckridge’s area of Thulamahashe saw video footage a week ago of the incident.

FNB managers told court they suffered a loss of R1.5m as they had to repay this money to the affected customer “because it was a member of our staff who committed the crime”.

She returns to court next month, facing six counts of theft.

(edited by MLM)

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