Former Walter Sisulu University student Sibongile Mani has been sentenced to five years in prison.
Mani, 31, a mother of two, was convicted of theft of nearly R1m deposited in her student account by Intellimali, a service provider for the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).
More than R14m was deposited into her account in 2017, instead of the R1,400 she was entitled to as a beneficiary.
Within two hours of the money being deposited on June 1, she spent more than R20,000, and went on to splurge more than R800,000 until her account was blocked on August 14.
Mani pleaded for a suspended sentence, but the judge said that a suspended sentence was inappropriate.
