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Gautrain fraudster to spend Xmas behind bars

Martin Czernowalow
By Martin Czernowalow, Contributor.
Johannesburg, 12 Dec 2014
The IT technician is alleged to have accessed accounts that would have allowed him to siphon as much as R800 million.
The IT technician is alleged to have accessed accounts that would have allowed him to siphon as much as R800 million.

The man accused of trying to steal as much as R800 million from the Gautrain Management Agency (GMA) will spend Christmas behind bars, after his bail application was denied yesterday by the Johannesburg Specialised Commercial Crimes Court.

The 30-year-old former GMA IT technician, Obakeng Israel Busang, was arrested on 12 November and faces charges of theft, corruption, fraud and money laundering - charges to which he intends pleading not guilty, according to his bail application.

Yesterday, the court rejected Busang's request for bail on the grounds that he is considered a flight risk, as he faces a potentially lengthy prison sentence if convicted. He will appear in court again on 10 February for trial.

According to Hawks national spokesperson captain Paul Ramaloko, the investigation is still ongoing, but he would not say whether further arrests are imminent. "I don't want to say that we are confident or not confident of making more arrests. We can't rule out further arrests at this stage, but we will be guided by the investigation," he says.

Busang came under scrutiny after suspicious behaviour was detected during a security audit at the GMA, leading to a lengthy investigation by the Hawks and culminating in his arrest. The junior IT technician is alleged to have duplicated bank accounts and gained access to bank accounts which would have allowed him to siphon as much as R800 million from the agency.

It is not clear yet whether any money had actually been stolen, and Ramaloko said this morning investigators are still looking into this.

Earlier reports stated Busang was allegedly part of the syndicate that defrauded the Postbank of R48 million two years ago. The Postbank heist was effected through the use of key-logging software and led to the sentencing of at least three suspects. However, Busang was never charged in connection with this crime.

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