Commando colonel held for fraud
2004-06-24 22:01
Erika Gibson
Pretoria - The commanding officer of the Brits commando was arrested this week on his game farm near Dwaalboom in Limpopo apparently in connection with fraud concerning payment of commando members.
Colonel Ben Coetzee appeared in Pretoria magistrate's court on Thursday on a charge of fraud involving an amount of about R20 000.
According to Jimmy Masinge of the military police's special investigative unit, a charge of corruption is likely to be added to the charge sheet before Coetzee's next court appearance in court.
Another four people - all commando members who apparently illegally got money from the defence force - will be taken into custody soon, said Masinge.
In terms of the guidelines to commanding officers, part-time commandos are entitled to a maximum of 15 days a month work with the units.
A commanding officer has to apply for the almost R3 000 a member on a monthly basis with the understanding that the number of days have been served.
The defence force pays the money directly into the members' bank accounts. The commandos have been struggling to survive in the past few years because of budget cuts.
Days are carefully allocated so that commandos still get their work done.
Masinge said a fraud crime would be prosecuted mercilessly as the defence force simply could not afford to lose money.
He said Coetzee was to have surrendered himself to the military police in Brits earlier this week.
When they arrived at his house, however, he wasn't there and he was then arrested at the game farm.
Coetzee was released on R5 000 bail.
In a separate case involving the defence force, colonel Johan Alberts, commanding officer of the 8 SA infantry batallion in Upington, was found guilty in a military court on charges relating to the defence force's ration regulations.
He requested meat rations for a unit function for people who weren't entitled to them. He was fined R600 and had to repay the R1 600 worth of lost rations.
Send e-mail to egibson@beeld.com
- Beeld