Akani Retirement Fund Administrators officials have opened criminal cases against Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) investigators.
The fund’s former managing director, Zamani Letjane, now the group chairperson, and the manager of operations, Nthabeleng Motsohi, opened criminal cases, accusing the investigators of theft and assault.
In his police statement, Letjane stated that on July 5 last year, the investigators came into his office, stealing a desktop and R100 000 in cash.
This happened when FSCA officials raided their offices in Kempton Park.
Letjane, in his statement, said while he was working at his home on July 5, 2022, he received a call from his personal assistant informing him of the presence of police claiming to be from the Hawks. The PA said they pushed and kicked the doors open, and she advised Letjane not to come to the office, alleging the investigators were aggressive and vicious.
Letjane said: “I phoned my lawyers to come to our offices to meet the police that were there, and the lawyers informed me that the alleged Hawks members were members of the FSCA.
“On Wednesday, 6 July 2022, I reported for duty and when I checked my office, I realised that my office had been turned upside down,” said Letjane.
He had allegedly left money to be banked, which amounted to R110 000, in the office, but on inspection he found that only R10 000 was left, while R100 000 and an Apple desktop worth R45 000 was missing.
“I made some enquiries, but my PA told me the desktop was taken by members of the FSCA, and they did not bring it back,” said Letjane in his affidavit.
Motsohi, describing her ordeal, claimed she had been aggressively confronted by the intruding white investigators, who did not identify themselves. Motsohi also detailed her ordeal in her affidavit, where she stated that the two white males who approached her on the day the FSCA raided Akani offices had made her feel very uncomfortable as they were aggressive in their “demeanour and dialogue”.
“The taller fat white male, whom I am now led to believe was Gerhard Gouws, demanded my laptop and private cellular device, at which point I told him he could not have them until I was advised as to what the purpose was for the request.
“At this point, the smaller white male, whom I am led to believe was Johan Olberholtzer, muttered something in Afrikaans and left my office.”
She said the other four white males, two of whom she claimed were South African Police Service members, then entered her office.
In her office, she was allegedly approached in an intimidating manner. Motsohi said she was shouted at and pushed around, and her arms twisted.
“When warrant officer Oosthuizen assaulted me. I screamed at which point people in the other office came running to my office.
“What is disturbing about this whole incident is that the persons leading the raid (which I discovered later) were Gerhard van de Venter and Elsabe Parratt from the FSCA. It would have been far more appropriate for Elsabe Parratt, a woman, to have approached me rather than five white Afrikaner men.”
She also stated the actions of those men, whom she called “unknown”, was to “scare her to the point where she was assaulted”.
Motsohi laid a charge of assault against five FSCA investigators last month.
When asked why criminal cases were opened a year after the incident, Letjane said Akani was waiting for the FSCA’s “so-called search and seizure report”. “Our legal team also sent correspondence to the FSCA to ascertain the reason for the search and seizure and the FSCA refused to give reasons. We are now waiting for a court trial to force the FSCA to respond or refute our request.
“We wanted to clear up this aspect first before we can create an interlocutory case. FSCA’s failure to respond confirms that their search and seizure was illegal,” said Letjane on Friday.
He also said that Akani conducted its own forensic investigation on the conduct of FSCA investigators . “Our report reflected a lot of discrepancies from the side of the FSCA investigators. The mere fact that they took the hard drives was ludicrous.
“Our report is part of our evidence to the court proceedings, which shows that their actions was a business robbery and not a formal search and seizure.”
Gauteng police spokesperson Captain Mavela Masondo confirmed that two criminal cases were opened with the SAPS in Kempton Park.
“Police can confirm that a case of theft was opened and the matter is under the investigation. No arrests have been made yet. Another case of common assault was opened, and the case was referred to Ipid for investigation.”
FCSA failed to respond to questions sent to them.
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