The five, employed in the building control department, were arrested by the Hawks for allegedly swindling the city out of millions of rand

Five City of Johannesburg employees have been arrested for fraud and theft, the municipality said on Wednesday.

The five, employed in the building control department, were arrested by the Hawks for allegedly swindling the city out of millions of rand, city spokesman Gabu Tugwana said.

“[They were involved] in a R10 million scam to defraud council funds for the submission of building plans over a 12-month period,” he said.

They allegedly accepted bribes in exchange for approving building plans.

Fraudulent receipts were generated and reflected on city records as valid proof of payment.

The five were expected to appear in the Johannesburg Commercial Crimes Court later on Wednesday.

City manager Trevor Fowler said several people had been arrested for fraud and illegal activity in the municipality recently.

“Our teams have been quietly working with the authorities in the past few months to rid the city of any activities of alleged fraud and bribery.

“[This] confirms the city’s determination to take a firm stand against our employees who participate in activities which compromise service delivery, as announced at the recent launch of anti-corruption initiatives across all departments and municipal entities.”