Cape Town clerk who stole R12.5m gets eight years behind bars

A debtors clerk who stole R12.5-million from her Cape Town employer has been jailed for eight years.

Mother-of-three Norma Florentino‚ 51‚ stole the money from Graphix Supply World in Ysterplaat by creating fictitious invoices and including her personal bank account details.

In terms of a plea bargain agreement‚ she was convicted at Bellville Specialised Commercial Court of 232 charges of fraud and two charges of money-laundering. The offences were committed between April 2013 and May 2015.

Hawks spokesman Captain Lloyd Ramovha said: “The accused further forfeited R219 909.51 to the state and in addition she returned R5.9-million to the complainant prior to the sentencing agreement.”

According to court papers‚ Florentino’s family encountered financial difficulties after her husband was retrenched‚ and were unable to pay student fees for two of their daughters.

The Western Cape head of the Hawks‚ Nombuso Khoza‚ hailed the investigating team and welcomed the sentence. “This is music to our ears. We hope it will deter others from doing the same. It is a clear indication of our justice system at work‚” she said.