The East London magistrate’s court on Tuesday postponed the sentencing of Sibongile Mani due to an outstanding report from the probation officer.
Mani, a Walter Sisulu University student, was found guilty of stealing from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) after R14-million was erroneously deposited into her student account on June 1 2017.
The error was detected two months later on August 14. Mani was only entitled to receive R1 400 from the financial aid scheme.
At the time of her arrest, Mani had already spent R818 000 of the funds. The university student is currently out on bail.
State prosecutor Luthando Makoyi told the court on Tuesday that a report from the Department of Social Development’s probation officer was not ready, indicating that only a report from correctional supervision had been finalised.
Both reports are crucial for the state and Mani’s defence team as they prepare to present pre-sentencing arguments before the court.
Magistrate Twanet Olivier postponed the matter to March 29, a date she hoped the litigating parties would have studied the reports and finalised their arguments.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa. To Subscribe to Sunday World, click here.
