Waghied Misbach

Waghied Misbach

Convicted fraudster Tony Yengeni will face no further punishment for violating his parole conditions.

Sowetan can confirm that Yengeni's two weeks of receiving no visitors and no phone calls is the only action that will be taken against him.

A reliable source in the Department of Correctional Services has confirmed that an investigation found Yengeni guilty of returning to prison 15 minutes late after a weekend during which he visited his family.

The source said Yengeni had been punished for this violation by not being allowed to receive visits or phone calls for the two weeks of the investigation.

But he was found not guilty of drinking while out on parole. Prison officials tested him for blood alcohol when he arrived back at the prison.

Yengeni was pictured holding a beer bottle during his weekend at his home in Milnerton, Cape Town.

The source said that Yengeni had not gone on a hunger strike, as has been reported, but had threatened to do so if he were not told what was going to happen to him.

When he was told that there would be an investigation into the allegations that he broke the conditions of his parole he dropped his threat.

Departmental spokesman Luphumzo Kebeni said yesterday that the minister of correctional services, Ngconde Balfour, was studying a report on the parole violations and would release its contents "in due course".

Yengeni is expected to be released under correctional supervision on January 15.

He was sentenced to four years in prison for defrauding parliament, a charge related to a massive discount he received on a luxury vehicle from a bidder in the multibillion rand arms deal.

Opposition parties have called for tougher action against Yengeni. Yesterday the DA's James Selfe said parliament's portfolio committee on correctional services should see the report and decide whether Yengeni's prison privileges should have been reinstated.