Winnie Mandela Faces Fraud Charges
Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, the ex-wife of former South African President Nelson Mandela, appeared in court Monday to face fraud and theft charges.
Madikizela-Mandela, 64, a ruling party legislator, was arrested Oct. 18 and charged with 85 counts of fraud and theft involving nearly $100,000, before being released on bail.
An hour into the hearing in the Pretoria Regional Court, Judge Peet Johnson agreed to a request by Madikizela-Mandela's lawyer Ishmael Semenya to postpone the case until Tuesday. Semenya said he needed more time to access information from the prosecutor.
The charges stem from an alleged scam to obtain bank loans for nonexistent employees of the African National Congress Women's League, of which Madikizela-Mandela is the president.
Addy Moolman, a broker also charged in the case, is standing trial with Madikizela-Mandela.
Both of the accused sat silently in court Monday and made no comment after the hearing was adjourned. About 12 women's league members, dressed in the yellow, black and gold colors of the ruling African National Congress, came to the court to show their support for Madikizela-Mandela.
Authorities said Madikizela-Mandela and Moolman, whom they described as her financial adviser, negotiated a deal with Saambou Bank last year to secure loans for women's league employees.
Sixty people falsely claiming to be women's league employees then obtained loans from the bank, authorities said. Those people all carried letters on women's league stationery confirming their employment, and most of those letters were signed by Madikizela-Mandela, authorities said.
Prosecutor Jan Ferreira said $55,000 was later deposited into Madikizela-Mandela's personal accounts.
Madikizela-Mandela has denied any wrongdoing, saying she reported the crime to the police.
An anti-apartheid hero, Madikizela-Mandela is wildly popular with many poor urban blacks. She has also been criticized by President Thabo Mbeki and senior ruling party officials as a self-promoting insubordinate.