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An alleged international fugitive, possibly the biggest organised crime kingpin to have operated in South Africa, is on the run.

With alleged links to human trafficking, prostitution, corruption, money-laundering, drug, gold and diamond smuggling and murder, Czech national Radovan Krejcir narrowly escaped law enforcers when they carried out a raid at his multimillion-rand Gauteng home.

Krejcir evaded police after the Hawks raided the wrong house. Hawks spokesman McIntosh Polela defended the elite unit, which first went to the wrong house during the raid and reportedly broke through the wrong gate.

“They mistook the gate for the suspect’s gate,” Polela told Sapa.

“They went through (the wrong house) and over that wall. It provided easy access to the suspect’s house.”

Krejcir is fighting extradition from South Africa to the Czech Republic, where he stands accused of a litany of crimes, including attempted murder.

In Wednesday morning’s raid, police discovered an alleged hit list in Krejcir’s home.

The list came to light hours after one of South Africa’s biggest crime bosses died in a drive-by shooting in Cape Town.

Cyril Beeka - whose name was allegedly on the hit list - was killed near the University of the Western Cape.

His murder, according to security consultant and former British spy Paul O’Sullivan, is believed to be part of a bloody trail left by Krejcir, who he says is trying to position himself as the country’s top crime boss.

With a search under way for Krejcir - whose whereabouts his lawyer, Piet du Plessis, has declined to reveal - and three Serbian hit men allegedly contracted to carry out the killings, the taxman has seized millions of rand in assets from Krejcir’s Bedfordview home.

Police are looking for Krejcir in connection with a multimillion-rand insurance fraud case and a murder.

The Serbian nationals are thought to have arrived in South Africa last Thursday.

They are believed to have been hired by an associate of Krejcir’s who was taken in for questioning during the early-morning raid.

The assets seized yesterday include a Lamborghini and a Ferrari.

This action has been taken as the police and SARS officials extend their criminal and financial investigations to include banking and foreign investment institutes in Europe.

The SARS investigation, involving the Reserve Bank, is aimed at stopping Krejcir, his associates or family from moving money out of the country.

The hit list is allegedly Krejcir’s way of ensuring that any threats to his safety and freedom - be they from his business associates or law enforcement agencies - are eliminated, O’Sullivan said.

Police raiding Krejcir’s home discovered the alleged hit list with the names of four men, Beeka among them, written in Czech.

Others on the alleged hit list are O’Sullivan, who has been investigating Krejcir for two years, prosecutor Riegel du Toit and Krejcir’s doctor, Marian Tupy.

Tupy, a urologist, has reportedly turned State witness against Krejcir in a R4,5-million insurance scam and in the case arising from the murder of German supercar trader Uwe Gemballa.

Du Toit is the prosecutor who has arranged plea bargain deals in the Gemballa case that are expected to lead to the arrest and conviction of Krejcir.

Gemballa was found in a shallow grave near Atteridgeville in September, seven months after he arrived in South Africa and then disappeared.

It is alleged that Gemballa and Krejcir were to set up an import business to be used as a front to launder money and smuggle precious metals into South Africa.

O’Sullivan, who also believes the killings are linked to the murder of strip club king Lolly Jackson, said his investigations showed a direct link between Krejcir and the murders of Gemballa and Beeka.

“My investigations show that Krejcir tasked Beeka to have Gemballa murdered after their relationship soured when Gemballa double-crossed Krejcir. When Krejcir’s relationship soured with Beeka he had him taken out.

“The others on the list, including myself, are there because we pose a threat to his freedom.

“He is trying to build himself up into a powerful organised mob boss and he will let nothing stop him.

“He has people, including senior police officials, whom he will use to ensure any threats to him are eliminated.”

Confirming the discovery of the hit list, spokesman McIntosh Polela said the Hawks were searching for Krejcir and the hit men.

“We invited Krejcir, who we believe is linked to the (Beeka) murder in Cape Town, to hand himself over, but he has not.

“We went to the media because we wanted him and the hit men to know that we were looking for them. We did this so that the murders would be stopped.”

Polela said Tupy feared for his life and had been taken into protective custody.

Asked about Krejcir’s link to Gemballa’s murder and the police’s other investigations into Krejcir, Polela declined to comment.

Krejcir’s lawyer, Piet du Plessis, dismissed the State’s accusations.

“We have asked for search and arrest warrants, but have received nothing,” he said.

“We have told the police if they are looking for my client we’ll meet them at their earliest convenience.”

The National Prosecuting Authority viewed the threats as serious, spokesman Mthunzi Mhaga said.”We are not taking any chances. The prosecutor has been secured,” he said.

SARS spokesman Adrian Lackey confirmed that assets had been attached.

“Our operation is focusing on the safeguarding of assets,” he said.

“Using the Customs Act, we confiscated assets without a court order on an urgent basis that there exists a reasonable suspicion that assets may be disposed of.

“We have been assisting the Hawks in investigating financial transactions from a group of individuals to establish whether any financial crimes may have been committed.”

TARGETS ON THE HITLIST

Paul O’Sullivan

Known as a former British spy, security consultant Paul O’Sullivan is the former head of South Africa’s airport security. He put together the dossier on the mutually beneficial relationship between former police chief Jackie Selebi and businessman Glenn Agliotti, and has been directly involved with the Hawks in their pursuit of Czech fugitive Radovan Krejcir.

O’Sullivan said he knew his name was on the list. He said he had been warned he was a marked man by one of Krejcir’s lawyers a week ago, but was not afraid as he was used to having his life in danger and was not prepared to stop his investigations.

Riegel du Toit

Little is known about this State prosecutor, who led the court case of murdered German businessman Uwe Gemballa, who was linked to a business deal with Krejcir. Days after Gemballa disappeared last year, Krejcir allegedly boasted to urologist Marian Tupy that he was behind the kidnapping and murder.

He also led one of Mpumalanga’s biggest corruption trials in 2008. It centred on a R30 million tender irregularly awarded to fledgling communications company Rainbow Kwanda.

Du Toit was not available for comment on being on the hit list but National Prosecuting Authority spokesman Mthunzi Mhaga said the authority was not taking it lightly. “He has not been instructed (to stop) working but we are taking the allegations seriously. We are on top of the situation.”

Marian Tupy

The 59-year-old Slovakian urologist turned on Radovan Krejcir, in the Alexandra Regional Court last week, identifying the Czech fugitive as the alleged mastermind of a multimillion insurance fraud case involving Liberty Life.

Tupy admitted to falsifying documents saying Krejcir had bladder cancer so that he could get a R4.5m payout. Tupy, who was previously based at Flora Clinic on the West Rand, was convicted of fraud and sentenced to seven years, suspended for five years. This was in exchange for agreeing to testify against Krejcir.

Commenting on his name being on the list, Tupy said he was in “the State witness programme, so I’m not allowed to say anything. But how would you feel if you were put on a hit list”? - Pretoria News