Former ANC Figure Convicted of Fraud

Allan Boesak, a leading anti-apartheid activist and former African National Congress leader, was convicted of stealing aid money from foreign donors, including cash given by singer Paul Simon intended for a children’s charity. Boesak was convicted of four counts of fraud and theft involving $400,000. He was acquitted of 23 other charges. Simon had given $200,000 to Boesak’s Foundation for Peace and Justice, but Boesak passed on to the charity only $128,000 and illegally took the rest for himself, a judge said. Boesak was also convicted of stealing $226,000 donated by a Swedish government aid agency.