Nolwazi Shange, a former actress from the popular South African soap opera Scandal!, has been accused of stealing close to R700,000 from the set of Queen Modjadji.
According to sources, Shange worked as a casting manager on the show and allegedly altered invoices and bank details to divert payments to an unknown company associated with her.
An investigation was launched after agencies supplying extras to the show reported non-payment. It was discovered that Shange had changed the amounts and bank details on the invoices, redirecting the funds to the mysterious company.
Sources claim that Shange’s lawyers attempted to negotiate a settlement with Rhythm World, the production company behind Queen Modjadji, but the agreement fell apart, leading to the opening of a fraud case.
One agency owner revealed that they had not been paid and suspected foul play when they noticed unusual account details on the invoices.
“We were asked to send invoices through Word document, and that’s how they changed them and added their own amounts and changed our account details,” the owner said.
When contacted for comment, Nolwazi Shange claimed she was unaware of the issue, stating her contract with Queen Modjadji ended three months ago.
However, police spokeswoman Captain Tintswalo Sibeko confirmed that a fraud case has been opened and is currently under investigation.
Rhythm World’s publicist, Thanduxolo Jindela, declined to comment, citing the ongoing legal process.
“We’re unable to provide further details on the matter as it’s handled by our legal team. We kindly request that you allow the legal process to proceed,” he said.
The allegations against Nolwazi Shange have sent shockwaves through the South African entertainment industry, with many awaiting the outcome of the investigation.