A 62-year-old serial thief has been handed 15 years behind bars by the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court. Stephanus Johannes van Eerden was convicted of 71 counts of theft after pleading guilty. The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said Van Eerden committed all offences over a period of 13 years, from 2008 to 2021, by using the same method of stealing from his victims. “He operated different investment schemes and persuaded people to invest in them as though they were legitimate businesses,” said NPA’s Lumka Mahanjana. Two of Van Eerden’s investment schemes, where he stole over …

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