Murdered auditor key in Cosatu probe
|Published
Cosatu president S'dumo Dlamini said the federation was "disturbed" by Lawrence Moepi's death as the organisation was one of auditing firm SizweNtsalubaGobodo's clients. Cosatu president S'dumo Dlamini said the federation was "disturbed" by Lawrence Moepi's death as the organisation was one of auditing firm SizweNtsalubaGobodo's clients.
Johannesburg -
The brutal killing of top forensic investigator Lawrence Moepi has sent shockwaves through trade union federation Cosatu.
Cosatu president S’dumo Dlamini said the federation was “disturbed” by Moepi’s death as the organisation was one of auditing firm SizweNtsalubaGobodo’s clients. The auditing firm does a lot of work for government institutions.
Dlamini confirmed that Moepi was an integral part of the team investigating the sale of Cosatu’s headquarters in Braamfontein, which was allegedly sold for R10 million less than its market value.
Suspended Cosatu general secretary Zwelinizima Vavi has been accused by some Cosatu affiliates of mishandling the deal.
“As Cosatu we are quite disturbed by the killing and the manner (in which) it happened,” said Dlamini. However the Cosatu investigation of maladministration regarding the buildings would continue, Dlamini said.
“We want to assure people that it (Moepi’s death) is not going to disturb the investigation. They were almost done,” he said.
Police have launched a manhunt for the four suspects who allegedly gunned down Moepi in his car at the Houghton offices of SizweNtsalubaGobodo, where he was forensic services director.
SizweNtsalubaGobodo executive chairperson Nonkululeko Gobodo said staff at the company were extremely shocked and saddened by Moepi’s death. Gobodo described the 41-year-old as an inspirational leader with insight, wisdom and talent.
The father of two was involved in many high-profile cases and was the curator in the Constantia Sectional Title Managers fraud case.
An experienced chartered accountant, Moepi previously worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers and was an expert witness in a number of fraud matters.
At SizweNtsalubaGobodo, Moepi was responsible for litigation, restructuring and investigative services. He was a member of the Association for the Advancement of Black Accountants of Southern Africa board and the Institute for Commercial Forensic Practitioners.
On Saturday the Association of Public Accounts Committees expressed its shock at the news.
The association said the murder was a heinous, diabolic and cowardly act. It called on law enforcement agencies to ensure that the perpetrators were brought to book.
SizweNtsalubaGobodo has undertaken to assist police in their investigation.
Last year, national Department of Transport internal auditor Andile Matshaya was found dead in his hotel room in Pietermaritzburg. Matshaya was strangled following death threats in the months leading up to his mysterious murder. He was also investigating corruption in the department.
After Matshaya’s death, the Institute of Internal Auditors said the independence of internal audits was under threat and that he was probably killed as a result of an investigation his team was conducting.
Sunday Independent