Michael Lomas to remain in custody until bail application next Friday

The corruption case against Michael Lomas, who appeared in the Kempton Park magistrate’s court on Friday after his extradition from the UK, has been postponed until next Friday in the Johannesburg specialised commercial crimes court for a bail application. 

Lomas, a former Eskom contractor, is facing 65 counts of corruption linked to R1.4bn meant for the upgrade of Kusile power station in Mpumalanga between 2014 and 2017.   

Lomas was arrested by UK authorities in April 2021 after the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC) launched an application to extradite him to South Africa. 

On January 30 2023 an extradition order was signed by the minister of state security in the UK.

Lomas lodged an appeal against the extradition order and he was unsuccessful. He launched four more appeals which were all dismissed.

“In an attempt to evade extradition to South Africa, he lodged an application with the European Court of Human Rights, and it was also unsuccessful,” IDAC spokesperson Henry Mamothame said. 

TimesLIVE reported that the wheelchair-bound and frail-looking Lomas arrived at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on Friday morning under heavy police guard from the UK, where he is a citizen.

The Hawks and prosecutors from the IDAC conducted an investigation into the alleged corruption at Kusile, for which 11 other accused are facing similar charges.

The case of the 11 accused is currently before the Johannesburg high court.

“Lomas will be charged and processed in the lower court before his matter is combined with the one appearing before the Johannesburg high court,” Mamothame added. 

TimesLIVE