Hawks raid Johannesburg City Power in connection with probe into suspicious payments

JOHANNESBURG - The Hawks have raided Johannesburg City Power, confiscating documents connected to an ongoing investigation into suspicious payments totaling nearly half a billion rand.

EWN understands that the cash-strapped power utility made three questionable payments to different contractors, allegedly approved by City Power executives.

One of these alleged payments involves R335 million spent on failed maintenance projects, despite warnings that the submitted invoices were dodgy.

One of the three contracts allegedly under investigation by the Hawks into City Power involves a payment where the power utility inflated prices by more than 1,000% to purchase electricity infrastructure.

News24 previously reported that the financially struggling entity was initially quoted R8 million for the infrastructure.

However, documents seen by EWN reveal that R100 million was paid.

Another case under scrutiny concerns City Power's decision to hire a private company to perform managerial duties at a cost of R55 million, despite already having senior managers appointed for those responsibilities.

EWN witnessed Hawks officials entering and exiting the premises of City Power offices on Thursday afternoon. 

They were seen carrying stacks of documents.

The ailing power utility has come into sharp focus following a series of allegations, including multiple allegations of fraudulent payments and nepotism involving its CEO, Tshifularo Mashava.