A meticulous Hawks investigation has led to the conviction of a senior police officer who conspired to defraud the Road Accident Fund (RAF) of R5 million by manipulating official accident reports in East London.

Warrant Officer Mandlenkosi Njekanye, 50, who was stationed at Komga police station and Xolani Somtsewu, 45, were found guilty by the East London Regional Court on March 24, for fraud and defeating the ends of justice, following an extensive investigation by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation also knows as the Hawks.

The fraud dates back to December 31, 2020, when Somtsewu was involved in a crash on the N2 Highway near Komga. He was driving a Nissan NP300 with a passenger who tragically died at the scene.

“Police were activated to attend the scene; therefore, the accident was attributed to a tyre burst and an inquest docket was opened," said Hawks spokesperson, Warrant Officer Ndiphiwe Mhlakuvana.

A year after the accident, Somtsewu and Njekanye returned to the Komga police station and coerced an officer into altering the original accident report.

Mhlakuvana said the report was modified to suggest that Somtsewu swerved to avoid an oncoming vehicle, a version that would have allowed him to claim compensation from RAF.

“When the complaint was lodged, RAF scrutinised the two statements and discovered the discrepancies. RAF repudiated the claim hence the matter was referred to the Hawks for probing,” added Mhlakuvana.

Following the investigation, it was revealed that the two men colluded in an attempt to fraudulently benefit from the RAF, potentially costing the state R5 million.

They were arrested on November 22, 2023.

They were granted bail of R500 each, navigating through multiple court appearances before their conviction.

The case has now been postponed to May 14 for sentencing.

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