14/06/2026
A former company manager in Marble Hall, Limpopo, has been sentenced after defrauding her employer of nearly R4.7 million over four years.
Collette Bronkhorst (53), who worked as a manager at Valley’s Best and was responsible for the company’s financial records and bookkeeping, was found guilty of fraud and defeating the ends of justice.
According to the Hawks, Bronkhorst manipulated company records between 2010 and 2014 and made unauthorised payments into her personal bank account and her husband’s business account, amounting to R4 697 674.88.
Following an investigation by the Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation unit in Polokwane, she was arrested in Marble Hall on 23 June 2015.
The matter was finalised in the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on 10 June 2026, where Bronkhorst pleaded guilty to 660 counts of fraud and one count of defeating the ends of justice under a Section 105A plea agreement.
The court sentenced her to 15 years’ imprisonment, wholly suspended for five years, and an additional five years’ imprisonment, also wholly suspended for five years. She was further declared unfit to possess a firearm.
Limpopo Hawks Provincial Head, Major General Adv Gopz Govender, said the conviction highlights the Hawks’ commitment to combating commercial crime and protecting businesses from internal fraud.
