A Mbombela advocate has been arrested by the Hawks for allegedly offering a bribe to a magistrate in exchange for a favourable ruling, reports News24.

Advocate Khalipha Ngcangca was arrested on Monday, and appeared in the Sasolburg Magistrate's Court.

The investigation against Ngcangca follows an incident on 2 April 2022, when he allegedly approached Regional Court Magistrate Deon van Rooyen, offering him R10 000 in an apparent effort to sway him to give a favourable sentence to a businessman found guilty of fraud, money laundering, and corruption.

Ngcangca was a District Court Magistrate in Nelspruit at the time.

At the time he was allegedly being bribed, Van Rooyen was the presiding officer in the case against Sibusiso Tshabalala, co-owner of eBundu Lodge near Nelspruit. Tshabalala would have been sentenced on 4 April 2022, in the Regional Court in Nelspruit. 

During the sitting, however, Van Rooyen placed on the public record that he had been approached two days earlier by Ngcangca and another person at his (Van Rooyen's) home in Sasolburg with a bribe offer.

He then recused himself and also indicated that he was only withdrawing from the sentencing part of the case.

Van Rooyen reported the matter to the Nelspruit police, the Regional Court Magistrate in Mpumalanga, the Magistrates’ Commission, and the Department of Justice.

Besides being transferred as a magistrate, first to Barberton and eventually Gauteng, nothing further happened with the matter until the Hawks in the Free State took over the investigation in October 2024.

Ngcangca immediately resigned after being informed of the investigation, according to News24.

During the Hawks' investigation, it was established that another person was with Ngcangca when he approached Van Rooyen.

It was established that this person was allegedly a prosecutor from Barberton.

On 18 March, a J50 warrant of arrest was issued. On Monday, he was traced and arrested, the Hawks said. He was released on warning, and the case was postponed to 8 May.

Ironically, Tshabala’s sentencing has been postponed 29 times since his conviction in October 2021.

Full News24 report