A British businessman, who was a contractor for South Africa’s power generation company Eskom, has been deported to the UK to face 65 charges of corruption.
Michael Lomas is accused of backtracking on contracts between his firm, Tubular Construction, and Eskom for work on the Kusile power station, which was worth more than 1.4bn rand ($80m; £60m).
“It is suspected that he was using contracts. He was previously arrested, got bail and fled to the UK,” national police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe told AFP.
He has not yet commented on the allegations against him.
Eskom has been plagued by allegations of corruption and is struggling to manage years of negligence that has led to long-term blackouts in the country.
Mr Lomas arrived at OR Tambo Airport in Johannesburg early on Friday. He was in a wheelchair and was escorted by the police.
Ms Mathe told a local news website, News24, that one of the conditions for being sent home is to have a doctor on the plane due to Mr Lomas’s poor health.
He appeared briefly at Kempton Park Magistrates’ Court before the case was adjourned.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) asked for Mr Lomas’s extradition in 2022, but it was delayed while he lodged several appeals, which were eventually rejected.
He is accused along with 11 other alleged accomplices – including two senior officials at Eskom and two other businessmen. They were arrested in 2019 and their case is still ongoing at the Johannesburg High Court.
Mr Lamos will be charged and investigated and his case will be joined with other suspects, according to the NPA statement.
The others have been charged with fraud, money laundering and corruption for allegedly taking over and increasing the cost of the work done at the Kusile power station.
This was meant to help ease the problem of electricity shortages in South Africa but the project has been plagued by delays and errors, according to AFP.
Mr Mathe said Mr Lomas is a “wanted fugitive” who will be handed over to the Hawks, a police unit that investigates economic crimes, corruption and organized crime.
The Hawks have been working on this case since 2017, when an employee filed a complaint against one of the tenders.