After spending a year behind bars, former Scorpions deputy director Cornwell Tshavhungwa will have his day in court next Tuesday when his corruption trial begins in the Pretoria Regional Court.
Tshavhungwa was arrested on June 7 last year on charges of corruption and fraud after he allegedly accepted bribes from senior government officials at a government development finance institution in Mpumalanga.
The Mail & Guardian first reported the bribery claims in April last year.
The state alleges that Tshavhungwa, who at the time was the lead investigator in a criminal investigation into the Mpumalanga Economic Empowerment Corporation (MEEC) and its former chief executive officer Ernest Khosa, allegedly used his position to corruptly divert the focus of the investigation in exchange for benefits from the MEEC.
The M&G understands that Khosa, who played a key role in the bribery scandal, will now testify against his old friend Tshavhungwa.
Sources close to the investigation say that, as part of a plea bargain, Khosa has corroborated the bribery allegations against Tshavhungwa. Scorpions spokesperson Makhosini Nkosi confirmed the plea agreement.
The MEEC was established by the provincial government in 1999 to develop Mpumalanga’s economy by helping aspiring entrepreneurs.
The Scorpions were brought in to probe the affairs of the parastatal after claims that funds borrowed from the MEEC had been misappropriated. The alleged fraud halted plans to erect a manufacturing plant in Nelspruit. The MEEC provided a R2,4-million loan for the establishment of the plant to a local company Savannah Forestry Equipment. The Scorpions were asked to investigate after the bulk of the MEEC loan disappeared.
The Scorpions investigators believe Tshavhungwa misused information he had obtained during the investigation. The information was allegedly passed on to a company owned by Tshavhungwa’s cousin, Ramcorp Business Concepts, which used it to obtain a tender to provide the MEEC with risk management services.
Tshavhungwa is also alleged to have pressed Khosa to employ members of his family, including his wife and younger brother. The state believes the subsequent appointment of Tshavhungwa’s family by the MEEC constituted a kickback.
The Scorpions investigators have also raised concerns about the fact that Ramcorp benefited from a risk management deal triggered by the Savannah Forestry Equipment saga.