The Regional Manager of the Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority (MERSETA) in Mpumalanga has been arrested on corruption charges after allegedly extorting money from service providers.
The 34-year-old official, who is tasked with facilitating skills development and training in the province, was caught in possession of R40,000 in cash. The money is believed to have been paid by a service provider in Malelane after the manager allegedly demanded a percentage of their payments.
Investigations revealed that the suspect had been soliciting between 20 and 30 percent from service providers’ benefits, threatening to delay payments if his demands were not met. This, according to the Hawks, put many training institutions at risk of collapse.
Acting on intelligence, the Hawks’ Serious Corruption Investigation team in Nelspruit, working with the Local Criminal Record Centre, conducted an operation on Saturday, 13 September 2025. The regional manager was cornered after receiving the R40,000 bribe, and the money was recovered in full.
The suspect, identified as Archie Mdaka, appeared briefly before the Nkomazi Magistrate’s Court sitting in Malelane on Monday, 15 September. He was granted bail of R5,000 under strict conditions, including surrendering his passport, reporting weekly at Middelburg Police Station, and refraining from interfering with witnesses. His next court appearance has been set for 3 November 2025.
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Good stories and to the point