Michael Lomas, wanted fugitive in the Eskom fraud and corruption investigation, has been formally extradited to South Africa from London and is due to file a bail application on September 27.Picture Caption: EYEWITNESS NEWS
(The Post News)- Michael Lomas, a British citizen and former board chairman of Tubular Construction, contracted by Eskom, has been formally extradited and handed over to the Hawks.
He was arrested in London on April 15, 2021, and is being charged with fraud and corruption in relation to the alleged incidents of fraud and corruption at Kusile Power Station amounting to about R1.5 million that allegedly took place between 2008 and 2018. The South African Police Services (SAPS) reported that Lomas had previously been arrested on suspicion of contract manipulation and, after being granted bail, fled of the country to the United Kingdom.
According to Hennry Mamothame, the spokesperson for the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption, Lumas filed four appeals opposing his extradition, which were dismissed. Additionally, Mamothame said Lomas went as far as filing an application with the European Court of Human Rights to avoid being extradited to SA, but the application was similarly unsuccessful.
The order to extradite him was granted in August of this year, and he landed on Friday morning, September 20, at OR Tambo International Airport accompanied by members of the South African National Defence Force and SAPS Interpol SA and a doctor, since he is being treated for a medical condition.
Lomas was swiftly turned over to the Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation, also known as Hawks, and transported to the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court in Johannesburg, Gauteng. The court postponed his case to September 27 at the Palm Ridge Specialised Commercial Crimes Court, where he is anticipated to submit his formal bail application.
Mamothame stated that 11 other people have been charged in connection with the same case, including former Eskom executives and Tabular Construction Projects directors, and their case is at present facing the Johannesburg High Court.
Moreover, Mamothame said before Lomas’s case is linked to the 11 other accused, he will be charged and prosecuted in a lower court.
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