A multi-disciplinary team of law enforcement agencies has taken a decision to attach the assets and freeze the accounts of former SAA board chair- person Dudu Myeni and other officials suspected to have been implicated in corruption that contributed to financial woes of the parastatal.
Sunday World can reveal that the National Prosecution Authorities (NPA), Asset
Forfeiture Unit (AFU), Special Investigation Unit (SIU) and other law enforcement agencies met in Joburg on Wednesday to discuss their findings. They concluded that Myeni’s assets should be attached and her bank account frozen.
The explosive details were revealed by SIU agents, who did not want to be named because they are not allowed to speak to the media.
Approached for comment, SIU spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago could neither confirm nor deny if such a request was made.
“All we can say is that as the SIU, we are working with all the law enforcement agencies who are part of the fusion centre, which investigates such cases, but we can’t comment on the matter at this stage as that will jeopardise the investigations,” he said.
The SIU cop, who is privy to the investigations, said the team had asked the SIU to profile Myeni and those implicated in the case and come up with a list of their assets that the AFU can seize.
“The assets that we needed include cars, properties, investments and shares, among others. We also intend to freeze their bank accounts which have cash,” said the cop.
The cop also said the team had zoomed in their investigation onto four companies, which had been doing business with the SAA.
“We cannot divulge the names of these companies as that might compromise the case. But we are satisfied with the evidence we have gathered so far in terms of how money was moved around in the bank accounts of these individual companies,” said the cop.
Another SIU cop said that during the meeting, NPA prosecutors wanted Myeni and those implicated to first sign warning statements before their assets could be attached and possibly be arrested, but this was vehemently opposed by the team.
“The team wants all those suspected to have looted SAA through corruption to be arrested by the end of November. The team is moving fast and the arrest is eminent.”
The cop also said the team had applied to attend the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture next week to listen to Myeni’s testimony. Myeni said she was not aware of the agencies’ plan to attach her assets and freeze her bank accounts.
Myeni was in May declared a delinquent director for life by the Pretoria High Court. The judgment was handed down in favour of the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse and the SA Pilots Association, bringing an end to an almost two-year legal battle.
Myeni was appointed as a non-executive director of SAA in September 2009. She was then appointed as acting chairperson of the board during December 2012, and as the chairperson of the board in January 2015.
She was reappointed as chairperson in September 2016 and served as such until November 2017.
Her tenure was marked by allegations of misconduct, particularly for allegedly refusing to sign the SAA/Airbus swap transaction despite being warned by former finance minister Nhlanhla Nene to do so.
