In a decisive breakthrough against qualification fraud in the public sector, the Mthatha-based Serious Commercial Crime Investigation (SCCI) unit of the Hawks, in collaboration with the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), ensured that Luthando Nomandindi (33) appeared before the Mthatha Specialised Commercial Crimes Court last week. He faced charges of fraud, forgery, and uttering on the same day as his arrest. He was granted R5,000 bail, and the case was remanded to August 18, 2025, for the disclosure of docket contents.
Hawks’ spokesperson, Warrant Officer Ndiphiwe Mhlakuvana, stated that between January 2010 and December 2016, Nomandindi was enrolled in a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) programme at Walter Sisulu University (WSU) but allegedly failed to meet the academic requirements for graduation.
“Despite this, in 2020, he allegedly submitted a falsified LLB degree certificate and a bogus Legal Education and Development (LEAD) attendance report as part of his application to the NPA’s Aspirant Prosecutor Programme, which required a legitimate LLB qualification or proof of final year,” Mhlakuvana explained.
In January 2021, Nomandindi was reportedly appointed as an Aspirant Prosecutor and later promoted to Public Prosecutor.
Mhlakuvana further revealed that Nomandindi applied for promotion to the position of Regional Court Prosecutor using the same fraudulent credentials. During the promotion process, the NPA requested him to submit his original academic certificates. Instead, Nomandindi resigned, effective March 21, 2025. The institution discovered discrepancies in his qualifications and referred the matter to the Hawks for investigation.
Investigations confirmed that WSU had never conferred an LLB degree to Nomandindi. Additionally, LEAD had not issued him the attendance report due to outstanding fees.
“Through misrepresentation, the NPA suffered actual financial prejudice of over R1.1 million from the salaries paid to him during his fraudulent term of employment,” Mhlakuvana added.
Nomandindi allegedly defrauded the NPA by submitting forged academic qualifications to secure employment.
