Machanik slapped with R1.5m fine

Johannesburg - Former estate agent Wendy Machanik has been fined R1.5m after pleading guilty to 90 counts of theft, Business Day newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The plea and sentence agreement was made an order of the Johannesburg Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Monday. She was ordered to pay R300 000 upfront and the remainder in monthly instalments.

Last month, she pleaded guilty to thefts involving R27m.

Her lawyer Sam Cohen said he was "confident" she would be able to pay the fine in monthly instalments of R25 000.

The court withdrew charges against her co-accused Bruce Bernstein, who was the chief financial officer of Wendy Machanik Property Holdings.

The two were arrested last year on charges of conspiracy to commit fraud, failure to keep accounting records, and failure to reflect over 100 transfers between the company's trust and business accounts.