Johannesburg - The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) says that it is investigating 102 law firms, including the sheriffs, which received duplicate payments from the Road Accident Fund (RAF) of approximately R340 million and have recovered approximately R18 million.
According to an SIU statement, they have approached several legal practitioners with the evidence, and they have opted to cooperate with the SIU investigation in defraying their indebtedness through the signing of acknowledgements of debt (AoD).
"To date, the SIU has signed the AoDs to the value of R68 000 000. The signing of AODs does not absolve the legal practitioners from any civil litigation that the SIU may institute or refer for criminal prosecution or being reported to a regulatory body, in this case, the Legal Practice Counsel.
"So far, the SIU has made one referral to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) for evidence pointing to criminal conduct. There are 10 possible NPA referrals identified and five possible referrals to the Legal Practice Counsel," read the statement.
The SIU further detailed that it was investigating 10 contracts for possible irregularities and fruitless and wasteful expenditures.
"Some of the contracts were flagged by the Auditor General. Four contracts to the value of approximately R837 million have been identified for review and possible cancellation," added the statement.
The investigation has five focus areas:
• Focus Area 1: The focus in this area looks at duplicate claim payments made to attorneys, claimants, and sheriffs and changes of mandates.
• Focus Area 2: This area focuses on procurement and tender irregularities, especially fruitless and wasteful expenditure.
• Focus Area 3: The area zooms into RAF payment claims from service providers who have rendered services to the victims of the motor vehicle accident.
• Focus Area 4: Focuses on possible inflated invoices submitted by the service providers, either by way of contract or the act. The investigation also focuses on possible collusion between the RAF employee and the service providers and the bill of costs submitted by the attorneys.
• Focus Area 5: This area focuses on fraudulent claims — both foreign and national — and home modifications across the country, as well as rejected claims.
The Star