In July 2024, the SIU, Asset Forfeiture Unit, and Hawks descended on 34 locations across Mpumalanga in a coordinated operation targeting COVID-19 PPE corruption at the Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport.
**The Asset Seizure**
R52.6 million in assets were seized from 22 senior officials and service providers: - **29 properties** — houses, plots, commercial properties - **31 vehicles** — luxury and other vehicles purchased with proceeds - **A boat trailer** — illustrating the lifestyle funded by PPE corruption
**The Scheme**
The corruption model was straightforward: Mpumalanga Public Works officials awarded PPE tenders to selected suppliers during the COVID-19 emergency. These suppliers either never delivered the PPE at all, or delivered substandard goods at inflated prices. In return, suppliers paid kickbacks to the officials who had awarded them the contracts.
The criminal charges laid include corruption, fraud, and money laundering — the full spectrum of financial crime.
**Mpumalanga Health: R9.1M Contracts Unlawful**
Separately, the Special Tribunal declared two Mpumalanga Health Department PPE contracts worth R9.1 million unlawful. This indicates that COVID procurement corruption in Mpumalanga extended beyond a single department.
**The Significance**
The Mpumalanga operation is notable because it produced actual asset seizures — something rare in COVID-19 procurement cases. The R52.6M in seized assets demonstrates that proceeds of COVID corruption were converted into tangible wealth (properties, vehicles) that law enforcement could trace and freeze. Whether criminal convictions follow remains to be seen.