Reality television personality Happy Simelane said she is thrilled that justice and karma are finally being served on controversial social highflyers Melany and Peet Viljoen, who were arrested in the United States earlier this week.
Speaking to Sunday World, Simelane said the arrest felt like long-overdue justice.
“This is just the beginning. I’m thrilled because the justice system failed us, and they ran away to America. I reacted the way I did because karma finally caught up with them, and I’m still going to rejoice,” Simelane said.
Following a police investigation into alleged retail theft at a local supermarket, the couple made headlines after their arrest in Boca Raton, Florida. According to US authorities, the pair allegedly stole groceries worth more than R84 414 from a branch of Publix over a period of several months. Investigators claim surveillance footage shows them repeatedly using a method known as “ticket switching”, where cheaper bar codes are scanned in place of more expensive items at self-checkout counters.
Simelane said her ordeal began after purchasing a Tammy Taylor franchise at Menlyn Mall in Pretoria for R2.8-million after being promised lucrative monthly returns.
At the time, the Viljoens were the franchisors of the brand in the country. Attracted by the financial statements that suggested the salon could make between R300 000 and R500 000 a month, Simelane said she made the investment. However, she later discovered that the financial documents allegedly belonged to a different company.
Things took a turn for the worst when she received a letter of demand for R152 000 in rent, despite claiming she had never been handed the keys to the store. Simelane eventually took legal action against the Viljoens. The dispute later spilled over into reality television when the saga became part of the drama on The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: South Africa, which was filmed in Jamaica.
During the show, Mel Viljoen dismissed the allegations and claimed Simelane had effectively “sued herself” in the matter.
Once known for their flashy lifestyle and ambitious business ventures in South Africa’s beauty industry, the Viljoens built their public profile around the expansion of the Tammy Taylor Nails franchise in the country. But years after their rise to prominence, the controversial couple’s business dealings continue to cast a long shadow, both in South Africa and in the US.
Five years ago, a media exposé raised flags about the Tammy Taylor franchise model operating locally. Disgruntled investors came forward, saying they had paid large sums of money to open salons but later faced significant financial losses.
The dispute surrounding the nail brand intensified in 2024 when the South African-born founder, Tammy Taylor, publicly accused the Viljoens of stealing her nail salon business.
According to her, they had no legitimate rights to the brand despite marketing and selling franchises using the name. The business mogul further accused the pair of counterfeiting products and even forging her signature on documents.
The Viljoens eventually relocated to the US, citing concerns about South Africa’s Expropriation Act and expressing the belief that white-owned property could be seized. In media interviews, they expressed that US President Donald Trump’s remarks, suggesting Afrikaners are “special” and could find a future in the US, helped crystallise their decision to emigrate. But the move overseas did not end the controversy.
Bail for each of the Viljoens was set at $10 000 (about R168 829).
