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7-year wait for pyramid scheme victims

Two pensioners who lost thousands in an alleged investment scam run by disgraced former advocate Lionel Jacobs, were yesterday unhappy to hear that the trial that started seven years ago was postponed once again.

Jacobs, 59, presented a medical certificate at the Port Elizabeth Regional Court yesterday, saying he would have trouble continuing with the scheduled judgment proceedings. He was diagnosed with acute cystitis, causing him to frequently visit the bathroom.

"As I am representing myself in this matter, it would be difficult for me to follow and make notes during such an integral part of proceedings if I have to excuse myself frequently," said Jacobs.

Magistrate Ronel Erasmus agreed to the postponement, but said it would be the last time judgment will be delayed as both the state and the court has "bent over backwards" to accommodate Jacobs on various occasions.

The case was postponed until October 7, which Erasmus said would mark seven years since the start of the trial when the accused pleaded.

She added that any further delays would be unfair towards Jacobs's co-accused Dean Brophy, 52, and that the matter needed to be finalised.

Jacobs and Brophy, and their company EP Consultants, were implicated in a pyramid scheme that saw upwards of 200 Eastern Cape investors lose millions.

They have pleaded not guilty to 393 counts of fraud totalling approximately R7-million.

Most of the investors were pensioners who invested between R10000 and R40000 in the scheme, with the promise of seeing a five percent return within three months.

Johnson Heleni, 75, and his brother David, 69, were acquainted with the accused and both invested R10000 of their pension money with EP Consultants after they were promised a large return on investment in a short space of time.

"We were looking for a way to increase our pension money, and this investment sounded very good. We each got R500 for the first three months, but then we found out the company is being investigated and the interest stopped," said Johnson.

"Then we lost our R10000. It forced us to work very carefully with the money we had left, because R10000 is a lot of money to throw away when you are a pensioner," said David.

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