The Gqeberha Specialised Commercial Crimes Court convicted Liezel Badenhorst (44) a former law firm trust accountant on 4 September 2024 for fraud. Badenhorst was arrested by the Gqeberha Serious Commercial Crime Investigation of the Hawks on 24 July 2024 and appeared in court the same day of her arrest where she was released on R10 000 bail.

During the period between 2018 and 2023, the accused misappropriated funds from Du Toit Attorneys. During the time Badenhorst’s duties in the law firm was to handle the clients’ investment funds, trust receipts and payments. Subsequently, the business entity managing director picked up discrepancies from the trust bank account, then the matter was referred to the Hawks for probing.

Preliminary investigations divulged that the accused made unauthorized transactions by transferring cash from practice trust bank account to her personal bank account in tranches.

The investigations by the Hawks further revealed that the accused used login details of a senior attorney and
made several transactions by transferring money into her bank account. Consequently, the law firm was prejudiced cash to the value over R17 million. Furthermore, the accused manipulated the accounting system which resulted into falsification of financial records.

Badenhorst was convicted by the Gqeberha Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on 4 September 2024 and matter was remanded to 11 November 2024 for sentencing.

The Provincial Head of the Hawks, Major General Obed Ngwenya applauded the investigating team for securing the conviction of the accused and expressed confidence that it will lead to a substantial sentence.

Source: South African Police Service