Johannesburg – Embattled businessman Edwin Sodi stands to lose his multimillion farm in Gauteng after failing to pay his bond since his dramatic arrest for corruption by the Hawks last year.
Sunday World can reveal that Absa has filed papers in the Joburg High Court in which it seeks an order to repossess and sell Sodi’s R10-million farm nestled on a one-hectare stand in Ruimsig, west of Joburg.
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 is cited as a third respondent in this case.
Sodi plunged into financial distress after he was arrested and charged with corruption, fraud and money laundering for his role in the R255-million Free State asbestos project last year.
The contract was awarded to his company, Blackhead Consulting.
Sodi is accused of paying kickbacks to government officials to secure the deal, something he dismissed when he appeared at the State Capture Commission of Inquiry.
Among those charged with him include ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule, former human settlements head Nthimotse Mokhesi, supply chain officer Mahlomola Matlakala, director of Orig Group Abel Manyeki, former Msunduzi municipal manager Thabane Zulu and former Mangaung mayor Olly Mlamleli. In the court papers that we have seen, Absa said it loaned Sodi a total of R4.2-million to purchase the property in the celebrity-rich suburb of Ruimsug 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 installments 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 is pleading with the court to grant it an order declaring the property executable. Absa said it did not believe Sodi and his company would be able to liquidate the outstanding balance within a reasonable period.
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