A man is expected to appear in the Middelburg Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Wednesday in connection with the R2.2 billion corruption at the Kusile Power Station, the National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA) Investigating Directorate said.
This brings the total number of accused linked with the R2.2 billion spent in building the power station to more than 17.
Some of the accused include former acting Eskom chief executive Matshela Koko.
The Investigating Directorate said the suspect was expected to appear at 10am after they were arrested on Wednesday morning.
“The accused stands charged on money laundering, linked to Kusile Power Station in Mpumalanga,” ID spokesperson Sindisiwe Seboka said.
“He joins 16 other companies and persons arrested and charged in the same case.”
In October last year, the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (better known as the Hawks) and the ID arrested a further eight suspects during raids in Mpumalanga and Gauteng.
The matter had been under investigation for over five years before the accused were eventually arrested on fraud, corruption, and money laundering charges.
Among the people who were arrested, included Koko, his wife, Mosima, and stepdaughter, Koketso Choma.
The arrest of Koko, his wife and stepdaughter relates to a multi-billion rand contract Eskom entered with Swiss engineering company Asea Brown Bovei (ABB) back in 2015.
ABB allegedly subcontracted work to a local company, Impulse International, where Choma was a shareholder.
Choma apparently received R30 million from the deal, and some of the money cascaded to her mother, Mosima.
The Zondo Commission of Inquiry into state capture, led by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo recommended that Koko be investigated and possibly prosecuted for a series of Gupta-linked deals during his tenure at struggling Eskom.
Seboka said last October, that in 2009, the power utility had contracted Alstom to undertake the control and instrumentation contract at Kusile. Alstom did not perform.
She said Eskom engineers recommended that Siemens be appointed.
“The State alleges that (former) group executive (for) technology and commercial, Koko, influenced and abused his position to have Siemens, Billfinger-Mauell and ABB invited to bid in a closed tender,” Seboka said.
She said Billfinger-Mauell dropped out of the tender process and ABB South Africa was awarded the multimillion-rand control and instrumentation contract in 2015.
The Asset Forfeiture Unit was in April awarded a provisional restraint order valued at R583.8 millon against former employees of ABB South Africa (ZAABB), their wives and Eskom subcontractors.
The Gauteng High Court granted the order.
Meanwhile, in December last year, the Swiss engineering firm ABB and the NPA have reached an agreement that the company would pay reparations to the tune of R2.5 billion for its involvement in state corruption.
The 17 accused are Koko, Hlupheka Frans Sithole, Mosima Koko (Koko’s wife), Turnkey Finishings (PTY)LTD, Dominion Capital (PTY)LTD, Koketso Aren, Firm Strategy (PTY)LTD, Thabo Owen Mokwena, Leago EPC (PTY)LTD, Leago Consolidated (PTY)LTD, Johannes Christiaan Coetzee, Watson Sebataolo Seswai, Thato Choma, Throne Concepts (PTY)LTD, the German Nations Sunil Vip and Markus Bruegmann, Impulse International (PTY)LTD and Gopal Shamji Kambi.
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