“Pot” Stemmet faces rates over theft of Lottery-funded products
“Pot” Stemmet faces rates over theft of Lottery-funded products
Blog Article
Richard “Pot” Stemmet, remaining, and an investigator appointed because of the Nationwide Lotteries Fee to analyze the Lottery-funded minstrel museum: Image from an investigative report commissioned from the NLC
Richard “Pot” Stemmet is experiencing prosecution following gear paid for with funds from the Lottery was faraway from a Cape Town developing he rented.
Stemmet is to look in court in January.
Based on a prosecutor the prison prices could include fraud, elimination of kit that had been connected via the Sheriff and interfering using a Town of Cape City electric power meter.
The charges stem from a complaint laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who, in the civil court docket make a difference, is looking for to Get well around R2.five-million in unpaid rent, interest, legal fees and damage to a rented constructing in Crete Street, in the economic place of Wetton in Cape City.
The constructing was Earlier the headquarters with the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA) and is where by a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating town’s hundreds of years-old minstrel society was supposedly working.
Convicted prison Richard “Pot” Stemmet is experiencing prosecution for theft and fraud soon after gear paid out for with Lottery resources was removed from a Cape City developing.
Stemmet was arrested by the Specialised Industrial Criminal offense Device on sixteen October 2024 and instructed to look while in the Wynberg Justice of the peace’s Courtroom on 21 November.
GroundUp attended court docket around the day although the matter was not placed on the court roll as the investigating officer didn't provide the docket to prosecutors. Stemmet has now been summonsed to look in court in January.
The criminal costs stem from a grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who's seeking to Recuperate over R2.5-million in unpaid hire, interest, lawful costs and harm to a rented setting up in Crete Road, in the economic place of Wetton in Cape Town.
The developing was Formerly the headquarters of your Cape City Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA). This is when a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating the city’s generations-outdated minstrel tradition was supposedly functioning.
The premises also housed a number of companies owned by Stemmet, whom law enforcement have referred to as a medicines higher flier. Among the businesses Stemmet ran from your premises were being a hat manufacturing enterprise as well as a nightclub. Stemmet continues to be arrested quite a few occasions for gun and drug-similar offences and served time for armed robbery while in the nineteen eighties.
Based on an SMS despatched to Meuwese through the investigating officer, Stemmet has now been summonsed to appear in court on 30 January 2025.
Though Stemmet is nonetheless being offered having a charge sheet, possible fees, contain fraud, removing of equipment that had been hooked up through the Sheriff, and interfering that has a Town of Cape Town electric power meter, Based on an electronic mail sent to Meuwese by a senior prosecutor dealing with the make any difference.
A grant of almost R13-million to establish the minstrel museum was Component of over R64-million in Lottery money allocated to your CTMCA concerning 2003 and 2017, with the majority of The cash - over R54.three-million - compensated during the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 monetary many years, Based on National Lotteries Commission (NLC) annual stories.
Stemmet was appointed a director on the CTMCA in September 1996 but resigned in December 2016. His wife Zainonesa and daughter Raziah ongoing fox888 as two of various directors of your organisation. Stemmet was reappointed being a director in 2021.
In accordance with Meuwese, the setting up was leased to Stalph 164, a close corporation of which Stemmet was amongst the directors. The business was deregistered by the businesses and Mental Residence Fee (CIPC) in March 2023 for non-compliance in publishing once-a-year experiences.
A new entity With all the identical name was subsequently registered as A personal company, but with Stemmet now not a director, In keeping with CIPC data. Alternatively, a member of the family, Ra’ees Stemmet, and Alfonzo van Niekerk were appointed as administrators.
Around the night of 12 April 2021 and into the next early morning, the Crete Road premises were being cleared along with the equipment was eliminated, As outlined by an affidavit by Meuwese. The gear was moved to new premises rented by Stemmet in Mymoena Crescent from the Athlone industrial area, which housed numerous of Stemmet’s enterprises along with a new “minstrel museum”, In line with a leaked investigative report commissioned because of the NLC. The investigator also photographed the devices at The brand new premises.
On the other hand, the intended new museum internet site, similar to the outdated a single in Wetton, was properly far from any of Cape City’s vacationer routes and website visitors could not access it. There was no signage to the constructing indicating that it housed a museum.
Stemmet’s firms vacated the premises before this yr after he fell sick.
The funding to determine a museum was not the one lottery grant which the CTMCA obtained. In 2021, the association was allotted R100,000 and R1.five-million in Covid aid grants. The NLC originally refused to expose who experienced been given Covid funding but lastly relented beneath media and parliamentary force.
Other lottery grants allotted to non-gain entities associated with Stemmet and his family and his associates consist of R1.4-million for the Cape Cultural Carnival and Occasions Committee in 2019/twenty, and an additional R500,000 in 2021/22, In line with NLC yearly reports. Stemmet is a previous director in the committee and his spouse, Zainonesa, is at this time a director.
And, the Peninsula and District Carnival Association, which happens to be registered with the CTMCA’s previous Crete Road workplaces, was allotted R190,000 in 2019/20, and an additional R635,000 in 2021/22 for just a “craft, woodwork and design and style programme”. Having said that, it appears that the 2021/22 payment was withheld following the NLC elevated questions on superb reports relevant to before funding been given by the CTMCA.
GroundUp has verified which the SIU is investigating the lottery funding received by the CTMCA.
Also below investigation is actually a R1-million payment through the CTMCA to MDU Consulting Engineers, which in turn compensated R500,000 of the to lawyers performing in the purchase of the R27-million mansion for previous NLC Board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
MDU also acted like a conduit for an extra R3-m payment by Zibsimanzi, a corporation through which the wife of former NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba was a director, towards the purchase of your mansion. Zibsimanzi gained R4.eight-million to stage a rural soccer Match in Limpopo just after Letwaba personally encouraged which the grant be paid to his wife’s corporation.
GroundUp despatched questions to Stemmet through SMS but he had not replied by the time of publication.