The office of the newly appointed acting South Gauteng Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has dismissed representations made by all of the accused in the fraud case of South African Football Association (SAFA) President Danny Jordaan.
It was revealed on Friday that appeals for the withdrawal of charges that were made by accused persons Jordaan, businessman Trevor Neethling, SAFA chief financial officer Gronnie Hluyo, and Neethling’s company Grit Communications were dismissed by the acting South Gauteng DPP Mzukisi Sakata.
Sakata began his tenure as acting South Gauteng DPP on September 1 2025. He was appointed DPP of the Northern Cape Division of the High Court, Kimberley, with effect from April 1 2022 by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
During proceedings on Friday at the Johannesburg Specialised Commercial Crime Court (SCCC) sitting at the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court, Jordaan (73), Neethling (46), Hluyo (55) and Neethling’s company appeared on charges comprising three counts of fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud.
The charges stem from allegations of R1.3-million fraud of SAFA’s financial resources between 2014 and 2018. All accused are out on R20 000 bail.
Prior warning
State prosecutor Adv Moagi Malebati said Sakata informed the four accused of the outcome of their representations on Thursday night.
Hluyo and Jordaan’s lawyer, Victor Nkhwashu, told magistrate Brian Nemavhidi that the matter must be struck off the court roll because the state’s “house is not in order”.
Nkhwashu said the state informed the accused that there are still ongoing investigations in the case, the charge sheet might be amended, and that there is a possibility of more suspects being arrested.
He said there are also three interlocutory applications brought by Jordaan and Hluyo in the Johannesburg High Court which are being delayed because of the state. He said Jordaan and Hluyo want the High Court to declare the search and seizure operation conducted by the Hawks in March 2024 at Safa House in Nasrec, Johannesburg, unlawful.
Nkhwashu added that his clients also want the High Court to declare their arrests in November last year unlawful. Also to be declared unlawful was the decision of the Johannesburg Specialised Commercial Crime Court handed in December last year to dismiss an application by Jordaan and Hluyo to have charges against them dropped and their case removed from the court roll.
Disputed delays
He said the state has not yet filed its heads of argument in these interlocutory applications at the high court, and thus the state is delaying the matter.
Moagi said the state is not delaying the criminal case at the Johannesburg Specialised Commercial Crime Court nor the civil litigation in the Johannesburg High Court.
He said the state is ready to proceed with the trial.
Magistrate Nemavhidi postponed the matter to November 21 for a thorough update by the prosecution on their state of readiness for the trial against the four accused.
In December last year, all four accused brought a Section 342A application to have charges against them dropped and their case removed from the court roll. Their applications were dismissed by magistrate Sharon Soko-Rantao.
Agreement not sanctioned by Safa
NPA regional spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane said the accused’s R1.3-million fraud allegations stem from a 12-month Service Level Agreement (SLA) allegedly entered into by Safa, represented by Jordaan, and Grit Communications in December 2017, for the provision of Public Relations (PR) and communication services to the football association.
Mjonondwane said the state alleges that Jordaan, in contravention of the Safa statutes, signed the SLA that was neither sanctioned nor approved by Safa, and that he and Neethling backdated the agreement to October 1 2017.
“Jordaan is alleged to have employed Grit Communications for purposes of protecting his personal image following allegations of rape levelled against him in 2017. Furthermore, he allegedly acquired protection services worth over R40,000, purported to be for Safa, from Badger Security during the Safa 2018 elective congress, while these protection services were allegedly exclusively rendered to him.
“According to Safa statutes, Jordaan was precluded from doing so, as only the CFO and CEO of Safa were authorised to sign contractual agreements. The PR services were already rendered to Safa by its existing department that handled PR and communications. Despite full knowledge of the unauthorised and unlawful nature of the actions of both Jordaan and Neethling, it is alleged that Hluyo approved the payments to Grit Communications and Badger Security,” said Mjonondwane.
