The man had just returned from an overseas flight.
The Hawks have tightened the net around the Tembisa Hospital graft scandal, swooping on a 37‑year‑old suspect at OR Tambo International Airport as he stepped off an overseas flight.
The man was handcuffed at the airport, the latest arrest in the multimillion‑rand tender fraud saga that has shaken Gauteng’s health system.
Hawks spokesperson Colonel Katlego Mogale said the unit’s Serious Corruption Investigation continues its efforts to ensure that those involved in the Tembisa hospital saga are brought to book.
“This is evident in the arrest of a suspect at the OR Tambo International Airport on 28 August 2026 as he returned from overseas. The suspect is alleged to have been part of the complex investigation into the multimillion tender fraud in the Tembisa hospital procurement process.”
Mogale said the suspect is expected to appear in the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court sitting at the Palm Ridge Magistrates’ Court on Monday, 31 August 2026, facing charges related to fraud, corruption and money laundering.
The allegations in the Tembisa Hospital cases relate to fraud, corruption, forgery and/or uttering, contravention of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) and money laundering.
It is alleged that certain hospital officials colluded with service providers to exploit the Request for Quotations (RFQs) system in procurement transactions below the R500,000 threshold. This approach was intentionally employed to circumvent the formal tender process.
The matter was brought to light by whistleblower Babita Deokaran.
Deokaran, a senior Gauteng health official, was gunned down outside her home in August 2021 after exposing irregular tenders at Tembisa Hospital.
She raised how contracts were deliberately split under R500 000 to bypass National Treasury oversight. The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) later confirmed more than R2.04 billion was stolen through 207 front companies and nine syndicates.
The six hitmen convicted for her murder are serving sentences ranging from six to 22 years.
Last week, the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation said that five years after whistleblower Deokaran was assassinated, her “ghost still haunts the corrupt,” warning that South Africa has failed to deliver justice against the alleged masterminds behind her killing.
Marking the anniversary of her death, Neeshan Balton, executive director of the foundation, said that while six hitmen were convicted in 2023, those who allegedly ordered her murder remain untouched.
In July 2026, the Johannesburg High Court granted a R326 million forfeiture order against the Maumela Syndicate, stripping it of Lamborghinis, Bentleys and a Bantry Bay mansion. But Balton warned that asset seizures alone do not amount to justice
