Johannesburg - An affair with a beautiful woman appears to have brought down one of the country’s top revenue investigators.
SA Revenue Service group executive in charge of enforcement Johann van Loggerenberg resigned yesterday, apologising to his employers and the country for the mistakes he made, and saying he hoped people would learn from them.
Van Loggerenberg was suspended last year after a probe was launched into his alleged misconduct. The Sunday Times had revealed that Van Loggerenberg had been romantically involved with lawyer Belinda Walter, who laid a complaint against him after their affair ended.
The relationship between the two reportedly soured when Van Loggerenberg discovered that Walter was acting as a lawyer for the alleged tobacco smugglers he and Sars were investigating for tax evasion, fraud and money laundering.
Walter reportedly confessed to Van Loggerenberg that she was also working as a spy for a unit of the State Security Agency (SSA).
The couple broke up in May and Van Loggerenberg subsequently went through hundreds of text messages he helped her retrieve as a favour, and started to piece together the existence of a special operations unit within the SSA.
The group allegedly had a hand in trying to reinstate former police crime intelligence boss Richard Mdluli, in ousting National Prosecuting Authority prosecutor Glynnis Breytenbach and in replacing Sars’s management.
Walter laid a complaint with Sars against Van Loggerenberg, reportedly calling him “mentally ill, unstable, corrupt”.
Van Loggerenberg worked for Sars for 16 years and was involved with some of its most high-profile cases – one of the most recent being that of EFF leader Julius Malema.
Yesterday, Van Loggerenberg said he and his employer had come to a mutual agreement to amicably part ways.
“I acknowledge that I erred in personal judgment concerning a matter in my private life and this led to unforeseen consequences that were outside my control. I need to take responsibility and accountability for this,” he said.
Van Loggerenberg said the events had taken a toll on his loved ones as well as his life, and that his parting with Sars was in the country’s best interest.
He said it was a privilege and honour to work with outstanding public servants and hoped people would learn from his experience.
Sars said it accepted Van Loggerenberg’s resignation and wished him the best for his future.
The Star