Former High-Performance Manager of the Blue Bulls Xander van Rensburg has been found guilty of defrauding the rugby team and sentenced to three years in jail.
Xander van Rensburg given three-year jail term for fraud
Van Rensburg has also been ordered to pay back the Blue Bulls Company a staggering sum after he agreed a plea deal for 13 counts of fraud.
In 2019, the Bulls filed charges against van Rensburg after it came to light he had committed multiple serious financial indiscretions.
Magistrate Martin van Wyk on Friday handed down the sentence to van Rensburg who learned that he would be on the hook for a R500,000 repayment to the Bulls on top of his three-year spell in jail.
An additional five-year sentence, was suspended for five years as the court discovered van Rensburg had accepted kickbacks from players and agents for signing players.
Van Rensburg was also found to have awarded a R1 million tender to a guest house owned by a relative.
The former high-ranking Blue Bulls Company man was found to have spent the Unions money on private purchases including catering and beverages for his own wedding.
Criminal charges were laid against van Rensburg after the Blue Bulls conducted a forensic audit into the dealings of the former employee.
Extortion of Blue Bulls’ coaches
Van Rensburg is said to have extorted a sum of R88 900 from longtime servent of the Blue Bulls coach Nollis Marais. Marais was forced to make payments to Van Rensburg to retain his position as coach. Marais remains with the union and currently serves as the forwards coach under Director of Rugby Jake White.
The Bulls have sought to put this sordid affair to bed, thus far refusing to comment. They indicated after laying charges against van Rensburg that no statement would be made until the matter had been concluded.
The Union now have a new CEO in Edgar Rathbone and have enjoyed an injection of capital from the relationship established with prominent Tshwane businessman Patrice Motsepe.
The Mamelodi Sundowns president bought a controlling stake in Tshwane’s other prominent sports team in November 2019.
On the field a new Director of Rugby has set the Bulls back on the path to being a force in South African rugby.
