65 Year-Old Gauteng Man Arrested for R100 Million Scam Released on R10,000 Bail
- The Hawks arrested a 65-year-old man in Gauteng for allegedly running a scheme that defrauded people out of R100 million
- Stefanus Geldenhuis handed himself over to the police and appeared in court, where he was released on bail
- South Africans were furious that he was granted bail, and many slammed the criminal justice system for allowing him to walk free
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Tebogo Mokwena, Briefly News’ Deputy Head of the Current Affairs desk, South Africa, covered a range of criminal activities, including cash-in-transit heists, kidnappings, taxi violence, shootings, police investigations, police shootouts, and court cases at Daily Sun for over three years.
Source: UGC
PALM RIDGE, EKURHULENI — A 65-year-old man who was arrested for allegedly running a multimillion rand scheme was released on bail in Palm Ridge in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng.
According to IOL, Jacobus Stefanus Geldenhuis was charged with 21 counts of money laundering and fraud. He handed himself over after the Hawks launched an investigation into a scheme he allegedly operated. He was released on R10,000 bail on 4 December 2025. His case has been postponed to 26 January 2026.
Gauteng man allegedly scams people of millions
Geldenhuis allegedly posed as a financial advisor. He then advised his victims to deposit money into different bank accounts after promising that he would invest it in offshore markets; however, he did not invest the money, and Geldenhuis was disbarred as a financial advisor. It was also discovered that his company was not registered with the Financial Sector Conduct Authority.
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Source: Facebook
Suspects who were recently arrested for fraud
An Eswatini Home Affairs employee was arrested in November 2025 for allegedly issuing attempted murder-suspect Vusimuzi "Cat" Matlala a fraudulent passport and identity documents. Nonhlanhla Phumla Malambe appeared before the Mbabane Magistrates Court on 27 November after she was arrested.
A former technical, vocational, Educational, and Training (TVET) college Student Representatives Council (SRC) member was arrested in Rustenburg in the North West for allegedly defrauding students of their National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) money. She had access to their account number and withdrew more than R100,000 fraudulently from their accounts.
South Africans not impressed
Netizens commenting on Facebook were not happy that Geldenhuis was released on bail.
Zaba Lindokuhle said:
"Bail is set to 0.01%. He's a lucky man."
Samson Chanetsa said:
"Don't put him near Thabo Bester because they will cook a bigger one than that."
Isaac Themba Mpofana said:
"Five-year suspended sentence is coming for him. Jail was never built for a rich man."
Hugon Tumber asked:
"How many Woolies bags did he need for R100 million? Or did he use those big Shoprite zip-up bags?"
Cebolenkosi Sizwe S'biya said:
"R100 million and you get R10,000 bail. This doesn't make sense."
Hawks cop and Thembisa hospital official arrested
In a related article, Briefly News reported that the South African Police Service arrested a Hawks sergeant and a Thembisa Hospital official over a bribery case. The suspect was accused of offering a Hawks investigator a bribe.
The Hawks officer approached his colleague and informed him that the official wanted to meet with him regarding an investigation. He then said the official was willing to offer a bribe to avoid prosecution.
Source: Briefly News
