A former investor accused of defrauding pensioners of millions of rand will finally have his day in court five years after his alleged victims opened cases against him.
Robert Gourrege made a brief appearance in the Specialised Commercial Crime Court in Palm Ridge on Wednesday to face fraud charges.
However, the hearing was postponed for the accused to provide financial instructions to his attorney.
His appearance was part of the prosecution’s preparations for the trial.
The state has concluded its investigations against Gourrege and is now ready to prosecute the former investor whose licence was withdrawn in 2014.
His licence was withdrawn when nuns from the Missionary Sisters of the Assumption in Highlands North, Joburg, were suing him to recover millions of rand invested with him.
The sisters had initially invested R6-million with Gourrege’s company.
Their investment portfolio grew to about R11.7m, but questions were raised when Gourrege only paid them R200000.
His estate was liquidated over the case in 2014, the same year that his pensioner victims opened criminal cases against him.
The pensioners resorted to the police when it became clear that they would no longer get anything from their investment and trust funds.
Pensioner Peter Pearse expressed relief that Gourrege would finally go on trial.
Pearse viewed his appearance in court without a lawyer as a time-wasting tactic.
“His appearing without the lawyer who has represented him since proceedings started (more than 20 appearances in court) is a delay tactic. He is terrified of going to jail,” Pearse told The Star.
“I’m one of those he swindled out of life savings. I’ve virtually got nothing left.
"He took money from over 40 pensioners. Part of the money (he stole) goes back a long way to when he worked at FNB,” Pearse said.
“He left FNB and got licensed as a financial adviser. He knew about all these old people who invested money at FNB. He persuaded them (to invest through him).
“He also swindled Catholic nuns, who liquidated his estate."
Pearse was allegedly swindled, together with his daughter who was in her 50s out of their life savings and inheritance from the estate of Pearse’s wife who died 15 years ago.
Gourrege’s alleged victims suspected that he had stashed about R16m abroad.