Former magistrate Maria Botha appeared in the Nelspruit Magistrate's Court on Wednesday on charges of fraud, corruption and forgery amounting to almost R5m.
Botha was arrested by the Hawks in 2017, following a probe that uncovered fictitious garnishee orders which she allegedly authorised from various magistrate's offices in the province.
It is alleged that she ran her own attorney firm after resigning as a magistrate and collected debts on behalf of a micro-loan business.
She also reportedly prepared administration papers and various court orders, and forged signatures of clients of a cash-loan company, resulting in the payments unduly accumulating in her account.
She was released on a strict warning and will appear again in court on July 2.
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