The Johannesburg Commercial Crimes Court heard on Monday that Hildegard Steenkamp spent most of the R537 million she embezzled from her employer on gambling and a lavish lifestyle,
- Hildegard Steenkamp was convicted of stealing R537 million from her employer.
- A witness told the court Steenkamp spent most of the money to fund a lavish lifestyle.
- The witness said Steenkamp spent a lot of money on gambling.
A woman convicted of embezzling R537 million from her employer splashed out R5 million on gambling in one night, the Johannesburg Commercial Crimes Court sitting in Palm Ridge heard on Monday.
Hildegard Steenkamp spent most of the stolen money on gambling and a lavish lifestyle, according to the testimony of a forensic investigator, Graeme Dawes, who is employed by Deloitte.
He is part of a team of investigators, including several chartered accountants, who were brought on board to investigate the case.
The State called Dawes to testify in aggravation of sentence.
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Steenkamp pleaded guilty to 336 charges related to the theft of R537 million from Medtronic (Pty) Ltd, where she was employed as an accountant, over a 13-year period.
According to Dawes’ testimony, an analysis of bank statements showed the money was spent on maintaining a good life.
Hilde Steenkamp has been convicted for stealing R537 million from her employer a period of about 12 years.
Belinda Pheto/News24
“The significant amount was spent on overseas travel, while massive amounts went to gambling, jewellery and fashion items,” Dawes told the court.
The prosecutor, advocate Tilas Chabalala, asked how much was spent on gambling.
Dawes said:
The curator got a report from local gambling houses, which was prolific gambling. Some gambling happened during her overseas travel. The highest amount spent on gambling was R5 million spent in one night.
Dawes testified that Steenkamp duplicated payments and transferred money into her late husband’s bank account. He said that in one month, Steenkamp stole more than R20 million.
Her late husband, Mathys, died on 14 December 2016.
“The cause of death on the death certificate was natural causes. Some witnesses told us that he choked while they were on holiday in Sun City,” Dawes said.
The hearing will continue with argument in mitigation of sentence when Steenkamp takes the stand.
Her legal counsel, advocate Francois Roets, told the court they would not bring expert reports.