Court orders repayment of R50.68 million from ex-Cellucity employee for embezzlement

In a shocking case of financial misconduct, a former Cellucity employee has been ordered to repay over R50.68 million after it was revealed that she embezzled at least R70 million during her eight-year tenure with the mobile company. 

Sharlene Phillipson-Garcia had a career spanning approximately 16 years at Cellucity, Phillipson-Garcia abruptly resigned in July 2024. At the time of her resignation, she was employed as an assistant to the finance manager.

She resigned via email after being confronted with unusual and suspicious accounting entries for which she was responsible.

Cellucity later discovered that Phillipson-Garcia had stolen more than R70 million over a period of eight years, from May 2016 until shortly before her resignation. She did not deny the theft.

Following the discovery, Cellucity launched an urgent application prohibiting withdrawals from two of her bank accounts and preventing the dissipation of nine immovable properties. At the time of the urgent application, Cellucity had only identified approximately R10.1 million of the theft.

She was ordered to repay the R10.1 million sought by her former employer. After further investigation, it emerged that she had in fact stolen at least R70 million. Cellucity then brought another application in the Western Cape High Court seeking the balance of more than R60 million.

Phillipson-Garcia argued that the court had already granted judgment for the R10.1 million and that Cellucity could not sue again. However, Acting Judge Gavin Cooper ruled that each act of theft constituted a separate cause of action and that Cellucity was therefore entitled to bring a further claim for the outstanding balance.

She also claimed that more than R9.15 million of the stolen money had been used to pay Cellucity’s creditors during her employment. Cellucity argued that this defence was doubtful because she only raised it for the first time in her answering affidavit in the second set of proceedings, despite having previously been urged to provide full disclosure.

According to court documents, Phillipson-Garcia channelled funds through her company, Basic Blue Trading 450 (Pty) Ltd, and also used the stolen money to fund other family-controlled businesses, including Ohana Beauty and Wellness, controlled by her daughter, and Little Phase, owned by her niece. Phillipson-Garcia was a director of both companies. She also used R6.2 million to buy a member’s interest and trading stock in another business, Rolling Thunder Distributors.

Financial statements from these family businesses showed that Phillipson-Garcia had provided substantial interest-free loans, injecting more than R6.9 million into her daughter’s business and extending a R2 million loan to her niece’s business.

During her employment she earned just over R41,500 per month, and Judge Cooper remarked that it would have been impossible for her to fund all these businesses on that salary.

After the theft was uncovered, she resigned as a director of the family businesses and transferred half of her interest to her son-in-law. It is suspected that she may have transferred the remaining funds to her son.

Judge Cooper found prima facie evidence suggesting that the family businesses were used as vehicles to launder stolen funds and shield assets

As a result, he ordered that oral evidence be heard to determine whether the R9.15 million was genuinely used to pay Cellucity’s creditors and whether the related companies should also be held personally liable for having been used to conceal and launder the stolen money.

The oral evidence is there to resolve disputes that cannot fairly be decided on affidavit, especially where facts lie peculiarly within the fraudster’s knowledge.

Meanwhile, Phillipson-Garcia and her company, Basic Blue Trading 450 (Pty) Ltd, have been ordered to pay Cellucity more than R50.68 million, together with interest from the date of service of the application. They must also pay costs on the attorney-and-client scale.

The oral evidence is scheduled to be heard on November 4, 2026.

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