Rustenburg - A father and son were convicted of multiple counts of tax fraud at the Bloemfontein high court, with the latter sentenced to an effective 15 years in jail, police in the Free State province said on Friday.
Police spokeswoman warrant officer Lynda Steyn said Norman Frederik Delport, aged 61, and his 39-year-old son Marius Delport were convicted and sentenced on Tuesday for defrauding the South African Revenue Service.
"Marius Delport was found guilty and sentenced on 136 counts of fraud. On counts 1 to 32 he was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment on each charge, and on charges 32 to 136, 15 years on each charge. All charges taken together for purpose of sentencing and the accused will serve 15 years effective imprisonment ordered to run concurrently," Steyn said.
Norman Delport was convicted on 136 counts of contravening the VAT (value-added tax) Act and sentenced to five years in prison on each charge, which were wholly suspended for five years.
The revenue service launched an investigation against the pair in 2016 which found that they supplied false statements on VAT returns.