BETTY Diale, an EFF councillor in the Rustenburg Municipality and a former North West legislature member, appeared in the Rustenburg Regional Court on Tuesday, 17 September on charges of theft relating to Road Accident Fund claims.
The case was postponed to Tuesday, 31 October for the state to reply to the submissions by the accused. Diale is conducting her own defence.
All necessary documents were provided to Diale in preparation for trial as she opted to represent herself.
The former attorney is facing six charges of theft, amounting to about R700 000, allegedly stolen from the Road Accident Fund (RAF) claimants.
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Police reports reveal that the Legal Practice Fidelity Fund received several complaints from the RAF claimants, whose payments were deposited into Diale’s trust account.
The claimants alleged that the said money did not reach them after the payout and subsequently reported to the police for investigation.
Diale practised as an attorney during the alleged commission of the crimes between 2009 and 2011 and was subsequently charged with six counts of theft in June 2021.
She told Daily Sun that she would allow the law to take its course.
“The case is already complicated. Let’s just allow the proceedings to take place. I don’t want to complicate the matter further by saying too much,” she said.
