Johannesburg- Fraud and corruption accused Edwin Sodi’s woes are piling up, with FNB taking the businessman to court for failing to keep up with his monthly instalments on his Rolls Royce.
Sodi – who has been charged with corruption, fraud, money-laundering and racketeering alongside suspended ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule for the R250-million asbestos tender in Free State – was hauled before the Johannesburg High Court by the bank last week after failing to pay instalments of over R9-million.
According to court papers that Sunday World has seen, Sodi was supposed to pay back R85 000 in instalments for 71 months on the loan he took out to buy the Rolls Royce Dawn in 2017.
The amount comprises R5.5-million principal debt, R1-million value-added tax and R2.9-million in finance charges.
But the construction mogul, who raked in billions of rand in government tenders, breached the terms and conditions of the contract when he failed to maintain regular instalments and was, as a result, over R1.1-million in arrears.
The bank said despite repeatedly sending him letters to settle the arrears, Sodi failed to do so, leaving it with no option but to litigate against him.
The bank is pleading with the court to grant it an order to repossess the vehicle and auction it off to the highest bidder.
It is not the first time Sodi teeters on the brink of losing his assets.
Sunday World reported in September that Absa filed papers in the same court asking for an order to repossess his R10-million Ruimsig farm nestled on a one-hectare stand.
The farm, together with a R1-million property in Aanwins AH (agriculture holdings), Johannesburg; R40.5-million worth of properties owned by his other company Base Property Holdings; and a R1.2-million property in Fourways Gardens was seized by the assets forfeiture unit last year and placed under the care of curator Gerhard Geldenuys of PricewaterhouseCoopers, who was cited as a third respondent in this case.
In the court papers, Absa said it had loaned Sodi a total of R4.2-million to purchase the property on July 12 2012.
This excluded the R5 700 initiation fee and the over R17 000 annual insurance premium.
Before Sodi and Absa could enter into a mortgage agreement, the bank representatives and Blackhead represented by him, signed a surety agreement on July 6 2012, at Roodepoort, bounding itself as co-principal debtor of the home loan.
The bank said Sodi was supposed to pay over R31 000 in monthly instalments for a period of 240 months. However, Sodi, who has reduced the principal debt from R4.2-million to just under R2.7-million, defaulted in his payment and was in arrears as the last payment he effected to his bond account was in September last year, a month before his dramatic arrest.
The bank pleaded with the court to grant it an order declaring the property executable and said it did not believe Sodi and his company would be able to liquidate the outstanding balance within a reasonable period.
The National Prosecuting Authority’s asset forfeiture unit last year swooped in on vehicles owned by Sodi and his company Blackhead Consulting.
They included a Ferrari valued at about R3-million and a Bentley Continental valued at over R3-million.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa. To Subscribe to Sunday World, click here.
