The appellant, Victor Kwenda, was employed by the Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority (MERSETA) as a Grants and Levies Administrator. Between 2008 and 2010, he abused his position by fraudulently altering the banking details of legitimate grant beneficiaries and replacing them with two fraudulent First National Bank accounts linked to an entity owned by his co-accused. As a result, grant funds intended for skills development and apprenticeships for approximately 200 disadvantaged youths were diverted into these fraudulent accounts. Kwenda pleaded guilty in terms of section 112(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977 to 26 counts of fraud involving nearly R4.9 million. Several counts fell under the minimum sentence regime in section 51(2) of the Criminal Law Amendment Act 105 of 1997. He was sentenced to an effective term of 20 years’ imprisonment. His applications for leave to appeal against sentence were refused by the trial court and on petition to the High Court, leading to the present appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeal.
The appeal was dismissed.
This case reaffirms the limited scope of appeals to the Supreme Court of Appeal where leave to appeal has been refused on petition, clarifying that the inquiry focuses on reasonable prospects of success rather than the full merits. It also underscores the strict application of minimum sentencing legislation in cases of serious white-collar crime and confirms that ordinary mitigating factors will not readily constitute substantial and compelling circumstances.