Maria de Lourdes Abrantis de Sousa v The State

The appellant pleaded guilty in the Johannesburg Regional Court to 13 counts of fraud, taken together for purposes of sentence, involving a total amount of R1 000 228,94. The fraud was committed through a scheme devised by her co-accused, Mr Dos Santos, an executive director of Maslex, with whom she was in a romantic relationship. The appellant allowed her bank account to be used to deposit cheques fraudulently issued by Maslex on the false representation that goods had been purchased from her business. After clearing, the monies were transferred to Mr Dos Santos’ account. The offences occurred over more than nine months. The appellant personally benefited R90 000, which she later repaid in full. She cooperated with the police, made a full confession, and pleaded guilty. The Regional Court sentenced her to 7½ years’ imprisonment. An appeal to the Johannesburg High Court against sentence failed, after which she appealed further to the Supreme Court of Appeal.

The appeal succeeded. The sentence of 7½ years’ imprisonment was set aside and substituted with a sentence of four years’ imprisonment.

The case is significant for reaffirming the approach of appellate courts to interference with sentences under the minimum sentencing regime. It illustrates how substantial and compelling circumstances may justify a significant departure from harsh custodial sentences in fraud matters, even in serious white-collar crime cases, and clarifies the application of the ‘striking disparity’ test.