The bank alerted the company about the fraudulent activity and Khan was arrested, which is when she hid in a freezer to evade capture. The humiliating moment is doing the rounds in the news.
Image: NPA
When she appeared in court in May 2018, she pleaded guilty. She claimed that she needed the money and used the money to buy her husband a car.
“However, evidence in the pre-sentence report revealed that she had used the stolen funds for gambling,” Mahanjana said.
At the time of sentencing, Khan sought leniency from the court, claiming she was responsible for her children, aged six, 12 and 15. She added that she was also ill. However, the Magistrate said that Khan showed no remorse.
“Prosecutor advocate Pulane Segalo argued that Khan had committed serious offences, emphasising that she had betrayed the trust of her employers for personal gain. She urged the court to impose a sentence of direct imprisonment to reflect the gravity of her actions. The matter was postponed to March 3 for the judgment,” Mahanjana said.
As court proceedings continued, the matter was postponed for judgment and sentencing on the 3rd of March 2023. Khan absconded and a warrant of arrest was issued. The NPA’s Mahanjana says she was finally located last week, over a year since she absconded. She says Khan was living at a new house in Nigel and was found hiding in a freezer.
In the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court, Khan was sentenced to 10 years of direct imprisonment for 63 counts of fraud that resulted in losses exceeding R3 million.
In addition to this, she received a further four-year sentence for theft amounting to R350,000, with the court ordering that these sentences run concurrently, resulting in an effective sentence of 10 years in prison.