A Limpopo man who defrauded revenue service Sars of nearly R1.7m was sentenced in the Mankweng regional court on Wednesday to an effective four years in jail.
Evans Setshedi, 41, submitted fraudulent tax returns on behalf of a municipality back in 2010, according to Hawks spokesperson Capt Matimba Maluleke.
“During 2010, the accused submitted fraudulent tax returns to Sars on behalf of Elias Motsoaledi Municipality in which it was owed R1.7m. The money was approved and deposited into his personal bank account instead of the municipality's account by Sars,” said Maluleke.
Setshedi ran out of luck as he made several withdrawals and the bank authorities became suspicious, according to the Hawks.
“During the verification process it was established that the account number did not belong to the municipality and that the accused used another person's particulars to open the account. The bank authorities notified the police and the accused was arrested on the spot,” he said.
Setshedi had been released on bail until he was convicted and sentenced to eight years' imprisonment, of which four years were suspended for five years. He is expected serve four years in jail.
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