Archive photo (Photo: Daniel Bone/Pixabay)
A former lawyer and transport delivery man from Kimberley has been sentenced to six years in prison after embezzling millions of rand from clients’ trust accounts.
Leanne Katherine Sullaphen Macleod (56) was found guilty in the specialized commercial crime court in Kimberley on 14 charges of theft and 14 charges of money laundering.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) says Macleod was admitted as a lawyer by the Northern Cape Division of the High Court on 18 September 2015 and ran her own legal practice in Kimberley. She was struck off the roll of solicitors on 23 December 2021.
According to the state, between 2017 and November 2021, Macleod received trust money from clients and other trust creditors in connection with real estate transactions, including the purchase and sale of real estate.
As a lawyer and transporter, she had to protect this money in designated trust accounts until the relevant transactions were completed, creditors were paid, payments were made to vendors or her professional mandate was fulfilled.
However, the court found that Macleod unlawfully transferred the money to her personal accounts. This led to a trust deficit of more than R4.6 million.
Several clients suffered financial damage because their orders were not executed and their money was not used for the intended transactions or refunded.
The money laundering charges relate to the transfer of money obtained from the theft of trust funds. The court found that Macleod organized and facilitated these transactions to conceal the nature, origin, movement and ownership of the money.
The case was handled by state counsel. Wilhelmus Johannes Els of the NPA’s unit for specialized commercial crime prosecuted. The investigation was conducted by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations (the Hawks), with ongoing guidance from the NPA.
Macleod was arrested in November 2025 by the Hawks’ serious commercial crime team. She then appeared in the Kimberley Magistrate’s Court and was released on bail of R5 000.
The court sentenced Macleod to ten years in prison on charges of theft, of which four years were suspended for a period of five years on the condition that she is not found guilty of theft during the suspension period.
She was also sentenced to six years in prison on the money laundering charges. The court ordered the sentences to run concurrently, meaning Macleod was given an effective six-year direct prison sentence.
Mojalefa Senokoatsane, the NPA’s regional spokesperson in the Northern Cape, says that crimes where trust accounts are misused and client money is embezzled are viewed in a serious light.
“Legal representatives hold positions of trust and are expected to maintain the highest standards of integrity, professionalism and accountability.”
He says when this trust is violated for personal enrichment, it undermines the public’s trust in the legal profession and causes significant financial and emotional damage to victims.
According to him, the successful prosecution shows the commitment of the NPA and its specialized units to combat complex commercial crimes, including theft, fraud, corruption and money laundering.