Durban -
Durban businessman and convicted fraudster Visham Panday is offering a R200Â000 reward for a car he claims was stolen from him earlier this year.
Panday alleges his Mercedes Benz AMG C250D worth close to R1 million was stolen by a Metro policeman in Stonebridge, Phoenix on May 3.
He has since used several avenues to get his car back.
Panday alleges Inspector Myen Marcus Moodley and his wife Shireen befriended him on Facebook under the pretext they were interested in forming business relations with him.
He has since laid charges of theft and is also suing Moodley for R1m.
“Myen and his wife invited me to their home for dinner after befriending me on Facebook. My wife and I agreed to go to their home in Phoenix.
That same night, my wife and I used her car to run an errand and we left the Mercedes behind. Myen said he would take the car and park it at his friend's house because parking was a problem where he lived,” explained Panday.
He claims that when he returned from running the errand, he asked for his car, but Moodley said that it was safe at a friend’s house.
“I never saw the car again. I contacted Moodley several times afterwards to get my car back but he refused to hand it over. I trusted him because he was a cop,” said Panday.
But Moodley tells a different story. He said Panday was a “liar and was destitute”. He added: “The man is broke. He didn’t have a place to stay and I allowed him to stay at my house for a long period of time. Why would I steal a car from him?
“He is using every avenue possible to try to bring me down, but this will not work because I have not done anything wrong.
“Yes, we befriended him because we were interested in doing diesel business with him, but that’s about it,” said Moodley.
Police spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane confirmed that a case of theft of a motor vehicle was being investigated.
“The complainant alleged that he parked his vehicle and on the following day he noticed that the vehicle had been stolen by unknown people.
“A case was opened at Phoenix police station for investigation and no arrest has been made,” said Zwane.
Panday is now offering a R200 000 reward for the return of the vehicle. He also said that the police statement was “incorrect”.
Panday, whose brother Thoshan, made headlines for his alleged involvement with suspended police commissioner Mmamonnye Ngobeni by allegedly throwing her husband a birthday party, said: “Because I am from the Panday family, police are dragging their feet with this case. This is wrong. I now have to try to find this car on my own even though it was stolen from me,” he said.
Sunday Tribune