The High Court in Pretoria ordered Absa, First National Bank, Nedbank, and Standard Bank to freeze the business, trust, personal and investment accounts of 15 account holders on Wednesday, Beeld reported.

The accounts would remain frozen until the municipality had completed procedures to have the money returned.

The newspaper reported that according to court papers, the money was illegally withdrawn from the municipal Absa account between September 28 and October 1.

Stephanus Petrus Piek, of the municipality's legal division, said in a sworn statement that certain employees had access to the bank account.

The municipal accounting system made it impossible for one person to capture and approve a financial transaction, Piek said.

All account holders with access to the municipal account were given passwords.

Credit division manager Hendrik Shonga said he noticed on October 1 that R180,000 had been withdrawn and allegedly transferred to an account belonging to KK Trading.

Shonga and his supervisor Harry Fourie then realised that more than R6m had been stolen, and a criminal charge was laid.