The Middelburg Magistrate’s Court has granted former Eskom group executive Matshela Koko bail of R150 000.
According to News24, Koko was arrested – alongside his wife, Mosima and stepdaughter, Koketso Choma – in connection to a multibillion-rand contract Eskom entered into with Swiss engineering company Asea Brown Boveri (ABB).
ABB, in 2015, was awarded a R2.2-billion control and instrumentation contract for Eskom’s Kusile Power Station located in Mpumalanga.
In turn, ABB irregularly awarded a R549.6 million sub-contract to Impulse International, a company which was partially owned by Choma.
It was previously reportedly that Koko had allegedly promised ABB more contracts to the value of R6.5billion for work at other power plants if the company sub-contracted Impulse.
Choma – who became a shareholder of Impulse after ABB subcontracted the company – is alleged to have received R30 million from the deal, some of which then flowed to Mosima Koko.
READ MORE: Ex-Eskom CEO Matshela Koko arrested for alleged corruption
State Capture
The Judicial Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, which was chaired by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, found that Koko was an integral part of the Gupta family’s capture of Eskom.
In the State Capture report, Zondo recommended that Koko should be criminally investigated for a raft of state capture-related crimes, including the ABB deal and the Guptas’ controversial Tegeta deal.
Koko, his wife and step-daughter were among the eight that appeared at the Middelburg Magistrate’s Court on Thursday on charges of fraud, corruption and money laundering.
Matshela Koko bail conditions
According to News24, Magistrate Deon Van Rooyen granted Koko bail of R150 000, and also allowed him to keep his passport for business travel in Zimbabwe. Koko argued he was not a flight risk.
Mosima Koko, Koketso Aren, Johannes Coetzee and Thato Choma were granted bail of R70 000.
They were also ordered to hand over their passports to ensure their attendance at trial.
NOW READ: ‘Let the NPA bring it on’: Koko says Zondo is setting up NPA for failure
