Ralton Christopher Fischer, a former Human Resources Manager at New Hope School in Pretoria, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for defrauding the school of more than R6 million. The Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court delivered the sentence on Monday, with six years suspended for five years—conditional on Fischer not committing further fraud or theft.
According to National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana, Fischer carried out the fraud between July 2018 and April 2022, while managing payroll for staff employed under the School Governing Body (SGB). Instead of ensuring lawful disbursements, Fischer rerouted large sums into multiple bank accounts under his own name, using institutions like ABSA, Capitec, Discovery Bank, and Standard Bank.
The fraud came to light when Fischer asked a colleague to forward payroll documents to his personal email. Suspicious irregularities were spotted, triggering an internal investigation. It was discovered that payments had been made to ‘ghost employees’—nonexistent staff invented by Fischer to divert funds.
Fischer was arrested on April 4, 2023, and later pleaded guilty. He told the court he used the money to feed a gambling addiction and to buy a VW Golf GTI worth R150,000.
While Fischer asked for leniency, citing his role as a father to four children, including two with special needs, State Advocate Abram Machitela argued for a custodial sentence. He emphasized the severity of the crime, the betrayal of public trust, and the negative impact on vulnerable learners at the special needs school.
The court heard that the school suffered over R500,000 in tax liabilities as a result of Fischer’s misconduct.
Magistrate Du Preez agreed with the prosecution, stating that Fischer’s actions were driven by greed, not just addiction. The court found no genuine remorse, arguing that his guilty plea was motivated by the strength of the evidence against him rather than true contrition.
The NPA welcomed the sentence as a clear message against the exploitation of public institutions, particularly those serving vulnerable communities.
