This media statement serves as a joint update by the SARB and the liquidator, to depositors and creditors regarding developments on the payment of qualifying retail depositors, other depositors, creditors and suppliers.
Raymond Gregory Papapavlou
PHOTO: Supplied
A 23-year-old woman will appear in the Groblersdal Magistrate’s Court on Thursday in connection with the murder of Raymond Gregory Papapavlou, a local game farmer.
According to Netwerk24, the woman is a close friend of Papapavlou’s wife, Simone.
Papapavlou’s body was found with several gunshot wounds in his house on a farm between Stoffberg and Groblersdal on 5 October at about 00:30. He was 28.
Limpopo police spokesperson Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo said at the time that police were called to the scene and found the wife of the deceased, together with some community members. The bullet-riddled body of the deceased was found in one of the rooms.
Groblersdal police spokesperson Warrant Officer Stanley Magaela earlier told the Bosveld Weekend Review that Papapavlou had been shot five times. There were no signs of a struggle. Magaela reportedly said Papapavlou’s wife fired several warning shots during the incident.
READ | Groblersdal game farmer’s body found with multiple gunshot wounds
The woman was reportedly arrested at her place of work in Kempton Park, Gauteng on Tuesday and remains in custody. According to Netwerk24, she used to work with the Papapavlou couple before moving to Gauteng.
More arrests are reportedly expected.
– Compiled by Riaan Grobler
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Proceedings in the Boksburg Magistrate’s Court was an event to be beheld on Tuesday morning as five men appeared for their alleged involvement in the murder of former Bafana Bafana goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa.
With limited space in the courtroom, reporters as well AfriForum’s private prosecution unit had to find ways to sit through the proceedings, while also maintaining physical distance to curb the spread of Covid-19.
Muzikawukhulelwa S’Tembu Sibiya, Bongani Sandiso Ntanzi, Mthobisi Prince Mncube, Mthokoziseni Ziphozonke Maphisa and Sifokuhle Sifiso Nkani Ntuli appeared before magistrate Hans Havenga.
Bongani Sandiso Ntanzi.
Chanté Schatz, News24
But a sudden turn of events caught the court by surprise when four of them – Sibiya, Mncube, Maphisa and Ntuli – appeared without any legal representation and contended they had no need of one because they were wrongly implicated.
Sifokuhle Sifiso Nkani Ntuli (middle).
Chanté Schatz, News24
The accused said they were being implicated because “they did not have money”, while those “with money” were out on the loose.
READ | Senzo Meyiwa: Leaked document reveals Kelly Khumalo’s cellphone records must be obtained in probe
They also alleged it was not true they were arrested on Monday and that they had been in custody.
Police Minister Bheki Cele announced the five men were arrested between 08:00 and 10:00 on Monday.
According to the indictment all the accused are South African citizens.
Sibiya, 34, and Ntanzi are respectively from Tembisa in Gauteng and Rustenburg in the North West, while their co-accused – Mncube, 36, Maphisa, 35, Ntuli, 34 – are from KwaZulu-Natal.
Bongani Sandiso Ntanzi.
Chanté Schatz, News24
They face five counts that include murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances, the contravention of Section 3 of the Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000 (possession of firearm) and contravention of Section 90 of the Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000 (possession of ammunition).
Mthokoziseni Ziphozonke Maphisa.
Chante Schatz, News24
The court heard the accused were facing a schedule six offence.
According to the indictment, the accused face a charge in that they allegedly unlawfully and intentionally killed 30-year-old Meyiwa on 26 October 2014 in Vosloorus and they attempted to kill Kelly Khumalo’s sister, Zandile Lorraine, whom they allegedly shot.
At the time of the incident, Meyiwa was also in the presence of Khumalo’s mother, Gladness, Longwe Thwala, who was Zandile’s boyfriend, Meyiwa’s friend, Tumelo Madlala, as well as Mthokozisi Thwala.
The indictment also states that count three is for the assault of Khumalo whose cellphone, a Samsung S4, was taken from her at gunpoint.
Count four and five are for the possession and use of a firearm, a 9mm parabellum C7 model 75 pistol whose serial number was filed off, without a licence.
The summary of substantial facts reads that while Meyiwa was at Khumalo’s home on the day, two people barged in at around 20:00 with a firearm and a knife and demanded money and cellphones from the victims.
A scuffle ensued between Meyiwa and the person who had the firearm and the footballer was shot in the chest. It is alleged the shooter had dreadlocks, a gold tooth and was wearing a khaki coat. One of the shots fired on the day struck Zandile on her right ankle.
EXCLUSIVE | Police find Senzo Meyiwa murder weapon
The suspects fled after taking Khumalo’s cellphone.
They dropped a hat on the premises while fleeing.
Meyiwa was declared dead on arrival at Botshelong healthcare facility.
The State alleges the accused were acting in common cause.
Addressing the allegations from the accused that they were not arrested on Monday, National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Sipho Ngwema said the reality was that they were all in custody.
ALSO READ | Meyiwa’s family hopeful after arrests: ‘We have been waiting for this day for 6 years’
He said warrants of arrests were only obtained last week and the police executed them.
“Maybe there’s a difference of understanding in terms of the technicalities that are involved because they were in custody, they [thought] they were arrested [sic].
“They were not arrested for this particular matter and so they had to be moved from the prisons where they were because there were warrants that were executed in order for them to be able to appear for this murder case here this morning,” Ngwema added.
He said the investigation was tight and there were no possibilities of wrongful arrests, adding they were confident the accused were the right ones at this point while more arrests were not ruled out.
Ngwema added:
We still have a long way to go. When the [DPP] took the decision on Wednesday because there was sufficient evidence to charge these five, there were number of instructions that he had issued so that we can make sure that when we present the final indictment everything [would] have been done and follow up investigations…
Meanwhile, Meyiwa’s brother, Sifiso, had only a few words to express himself following court proceedings, saying it was just the beginning.
“When they [the accused] say they don’t know anything, obviously when you are arrested for a crime, you deny it. Investigations will continue. But I am happy there have been people arrested. The police bringing them to court mean they have done their investigation and I don’t think they would have brought them in without any evidence.”
He thanked the scores of supporters who had come out to court, calling for the accused to remain in jail.
The five men will remain in custody at various prisons and police custody.
They will appear again in the Boksburg Magistrate’s Court on 27 November to allow for the State to submit a final submission for the case to be moved to the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg.
* Please note: police and court officials faces have been distorted as per the court’s instruction.
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Two women have appeared in court for allegedly trafficking a baby, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Monday.
According to the NPA, the baby’s mother had given birth at her boyfriend’s home in Cala and went to hospital afterwards.
Two days later, she called him to say their baby had died and had already been buried.
“She failed to show him the grave and that prompted the father to approach the police,” said NPA spokesperson Luxolo Tyali.
The baby’s mother was arrested on Thursday, 22 October.
ALSO READ | Human trafficking ring: Hawks rescue ‘sex slaves’, arrest five in swoop on three properties
Investigations led police to another woman, who the NPA allege is a sex worker.
She was arrested in Kempton Park, Gauteng, over the weekend and they appeared in court on Monday.
She is alleged to have bought the baby from the mother for an unknown amount.
Tyali told News24 they do not know yet why the baby was bought.
He said the baby was taken to a place of safety and is being cared for.
The woman, from Zimbabwe, also faces a separate charge of being in the country illegally.
The case was postponed to 2 November for bail information.
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Arms manufacturer Denel has been grappling with governance and financial issues.
Poor governance at Denel took centre stage at the commission of inquiry into state capture on Monday, as current board chairperson Monhla Hlahla painted a picture of an organisation where compliance had taken a back seat.
Hlahla is one of the state-owned defence company’s 12 interim board members appointed by public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan in 2018 to turn the beleaguered entity around.
‘Very glaring’
“The general lack of appreciation of the need to comply is very glaring, and you were not sure whether it is because everyone is stressed – they don’t know whether or not they are going to get paid, or is it just the way things are at Denel?” said Hlahla, describing the state of the company when the new board came in.
She explained that staff had not been doing tasks that every SOE should be acquainted with, such as meeting with the Treasury monthly to ensure that the Denel stayed financially compliant.
“There was almost a general lack of awareness and therefore accountability.”
– Monhla Hlahla
Denel has been on a downward spiral in the past three years and has been crippled by financial issues, poor governance and allegations of involvement in state capture. Just this month, it approached the Department of Defence for a R683-million bailout.
There have also been various criminal and forensic investigations on the company by law firms ENS Africa, Dentons, Bowmans, BDO, Ngidi, the South African Police Service and the Special Investigating Unit.
Hlala said the state-owned entity was in a deep liquidity crisis when the new board came in with staff in limbo about whether or not their salaries would be paid. She added that the employees had turned to the board for a solution on how the company had found itself in dire straits and how it would get itself out.
The chairperson explained that one of the challenges at Denel relate to its lack of information management, like keeping up-to-date minutes that makes it impossible to learn from the past.
Earlier on Monday, the inquiry had heard from former board member Nonyameko Mandindi, who was appointed in May 2015 and resigned in July 2016. Mandindi told the inquiry that the company’s meetings would include issues that had not been tabled for discussion and not prepared for.
One was the audit risk committee’s request in September 2015 that the assess then group CEO Rias Saloojee’s competence as well as that of then CFO Fikile Mhlontlo and company secretary Elizabeth Africa. Mandindi said the move seemed to be hasty since the request was just a few months after the board was appointed and it was too soon for it to make a judgment on the trio.
She said she had raised her issues around the expectation that the board would assess and perhaps make a decision on whether the executives should be suspended, but never got a response to her letters and emails.
The inquiry will continue on Tuesday.
Benjamin Botha said he was there to protest against farm murders, gender-based violence and gangsterism. (Ashraf Hendricks, GroundUp)
About 300 farmers and supporters gathered outside Parliament on Sunday to protest against farm murders and farm fires. Clutching white crosses, a group marched to Parliament chanting “die boere kom!” (the farmers are coming!) while others arrived on motorcycles and in their cars.
In July, a similar protest took place, according to GroundUp.
“The farmers are the reason why we have bread and butter. Why we have food. Why we have meat. They are the heart and soul of the country,” said Justin Taylor, a supporter who arrived on a motorbike.
He said he was there to make a stand against farm murders. Taylor said more policing and patrolling were needed.
The government was focusing on gangsterism and train sabotage, but “we haven’t seen any law enforcement acts in the farmland”, he said.According to AfriForum, there were an estimated 57 farm murders in 2019.”Farmers are living in fear in our country,” said Ivan Meyer, Western Cape Agriculture MEC. Addressing the crowd, he said agriculture played a significant role in South Africa’s economy, and “an attack on a farmer or a farmworker is an attack on the economy of South Africa”.
Meyer said President Cyril Ramaphosa should be concerned about farm attacks “because a farm murder in South Africa compromises food security and political stability on the African continent”.”Our hearts are bleeding,” he said. “Mr President, stop farm attacks in South Africa right now!”
Jannie Meyer, convener of the protest, said, “I want people to take us seriously. We are not here to fight. I want the president and all the heads of political parties to understand that we must unite, come together and solve this problem amicably”.
He said he was not part of any organisation, but wanted the government to treat farm murders, farm fires and threats as “priority crimes”.
A FlySafair flight was forced to turn back to the terminal on Saturday after a passenger onboard refused to wear a mask.
According to the airline’s spokesperson, Kirby Gordon, Flight FA288 was taxiing towards the runway at OR Tambo International Airport after 17:00, about to take off to King Shaka International Airport, when the incident happened.
The said passenger refused to wear his mask, leaving the airline crew and pilot with no other choice but to offload him.
“The gentleman refused to wear his mask, which is a national law, and Civil Aviation regulation and it happened before the aircraft took off.
“We, unfortunately, had to turn back to the terminal and he was escorted off the aircraft by SAPS,” said Gordon.
Gordon added that the passenger had refused to comply with regulations and to wear his mask on board. He said the airline had no other alternative but to turn back after struggling to have the passenger comply.
READ | Level 3 lockdown: Airports and airlines gear up for opening, but not many travellers expected
“The reality is that in this new normal, wearing a mask in a public space is the national law, and it is also Civil Aviation regulation. So we need to enforce that rule with the same degree of vigilance that we would if, say a passenger would sit down in an aircraft and light a cigarette or refuse to wear their seatbelt.
“Not following regulation and law puts our operating license in jeopardy, but more than that, it’s bout maintaining the right thing to do so we have tolerance policy on this matter,” the spokesperson.
He added that the incident had caused a slight delay to the flight, affecting others too, but the time was made up.
Gordon said as a matter of interest, if a flight was midway and a passenger refused to comply with any regulations, the pilot was allowed to decide to land at the nearest airport or return to where the flight departed from.
“In which case we will hold the individual who was jeopardising everyone’s safety liable for the costs to land that aircraft, then we take off again, which could easily be in the region of about R120 000,” he said.