Estate agency mogul Wendy Machanik and Bruce Bernstein, the firm’s chief financial officer, have appeared in the Commercial Crimes Court on three charges of contravening the Estate Agency Affairs Act and 116 charges of conspiracy to commit fraud involving R25.2 million.
This follows the Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB) launching a probe into Wendy Machanik Properties (WMP) after a tip-off by a whistle-blower.
A forensic audit by Pasco Risk Management revealed that WMP and Machanik had allegedly contravened the act and misappropriated trust funds between March 2007 and February last year.
The 116 charges of conspiracy to commit fraud in terms of the Riotous Assemblies Act relate to alleged fictitious property sale deals and the transfers of money from WMP’s trust account to the firm’s business account that was allegedly not due and payable nor made in the normal course of business.
Moneyweb reported that Machanik and Bernstein were granted R25 000 and R5 000 bail respectively. Both had to surrender their passports.
Machanik and Bernstein will appear in court again in April. – Roy Cokayne