ACCUSED EXTRADITED FROM THE UNITED KINDOM (UK) APPEARS IN COURT IN CONNECTION WITH THE R1,4 BILLION ESKOM CORRUPTION CASE
The Kempton Park Magistrates’ Court postponed the corruption case against Michael Harry Lomas to 27 September 2024 at the Palm Ridge Specialised Commercial Crimes Court for formal bail application. Lomas is facing 65 counts of corruption linked to the R1,4 billion that was meant for the upgrade of Eskom’s Kusile power station in Mpumalanga between 2014 and 2017.
His court appearance follows a successful extradition launched by the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC) from the United Kingdom, wherein he was arrested by the authorities on 15 April 2021 and released on bail on 20 May 2021. The state’s application for his extradition was opposed, however on 30 January 2023 an extradition order was signed by the Minister of State Security in the UK. Subsequently, he lodged an appeal against the extradition order, and he was unsuccessful. Furthermore, he launched four more appeals which were all dismissed. In an attempt to evade extradition to South Africa, he lodged an application with the European Court of Human Rights, and it was also unsuccessful.
The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI) in collaboration with prosecutors from IDAC, conducted an intensive investigation into the alleged corruption at Kusile power station, wherein 11 other accused are facing similar charges. Following the arrest and court appearance of the 11 accused that include Eskom’s former executives and Tibular Construction Projects directors, the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) was granted a restraint order valued at approximately R1,4 billion against their assets. The matter for the 11 accused is currently before the Johannesburg High Court. Lomas will be charged and processed in the lower court before his matter is combined with the one appearing before the Johannesburg High Court where the matter is prosecuted by IDAC.
