Former KPMG auditor says Gupta account gaffe cost him dearly
Wessels pleads with regulatory board not to deregister him
A former KPMG auditor who was responsible for the audits of Gupta-owned Linkway Trading has pleaded with the auditors regulating body not to deregister him, saying he has already been punished a lot. An independent disciplinary committee found Jacques Wessels guilty in 2018 of all six charges related to improper conduct and tax evasion which the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors (Irba) levelled against him. “To some degree, I have been punished a lot. When I left KPMG, I only got two months’ salary. For a period between October 2017 and October 2018 I had no income. To ensure that my children go to school I had to sell my vehicle,” said Wessels, while pleading for a lighter sanction on Thursday.
He spoke for the first time on Thursday about the audit work he did for the Gupta-owned companies and his relationship with the family. He said the incident had severely damaged his trust in people because his Gupta clients consistently denied any wrongdoing when he spoke to th...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.