Cape Town - The two lavish houses of a controversial Cape Flats pastor accused of running a multi-million rand Ponzi scheme will come under the hammer next month.
Parow’s New Directions Church pastor Colin Davids lost his first round in court last month after a judge ordered that R100 million in funds be returned to his “investors”.
Now ClareMart Auction Group will take the houses, a mansion in Plattekloof and another house in Hermanus, to auction.
Davids, the director of Platinum Forex Group, faces charges of fraud, contravention of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act (FAIS), for which he was not registered or licensed to perform.
Last month, the Western Cape High Court said of the over R300m that was initially invested in Davids’s company, only about R100m remains.
It ruled that a curator oversee the process of distributing frozen funds to investors.
ClareMart said it had been instructed by KPMG to take two properties to auction and that the properties were part of a “high profile court appointed curatorship”.
Although ClareMart would not confirm they were Davids’s houses, sources confirm they are.
The first house to be auctioned will be Davids’s luxurious six-bedroomed split-level home in the Overstrand, described as having “spectacular views of the Hermanus coastline”.
Described as an ‘entertainer’s delight’, Colin Davids’s Hermanus home is set to go under the hammer.
The home is set on a 728m² erf and been described as “an entertainer’s delight”.
“On the ground floor, the entrance hall leads to an informal lounge area, two bathrooms, a store room and five bedrooms - one of which has an en-suite bathroom.
The master bedroom with en-suite bathroom and walk-in dressing room is on the first floor where the views are best.
Here you will also find an open-plan lounge/dining room as well as the entertainment room.
This level also includes the kitchen, laundry, guest loo and TV room.
The house also has staff quarters and a double garage.
The mansion is described as “among the best that Cape Town’s northern suburbs has to offer".
"Plattekloof is renowned for its breathtaking views of Cape Town by day and night. Wide open spaces, natural flow of movement and lots of light characterise this immaculate family home built on a 1700m² erf”.
The living quarters are downstairs, and include a family room, open-plan kitchen, lounge and dining room as well as a braai room, while the upper level has its own entrance and also comes with a lounge, dining room and kitchen complete with scullery.
All five bedrooms are on the upper level - the main bedroom has an en-suite bathroom and walk-in closet.
There are also two additional bathrooms and a study area on this level.
A pool and outdoors entertainment area, plus three garages ensure ample secure parking.
Pastor Colin Davids leaves the Bellville Magistrate’s Court last year. File picture: Patrick Louw
Davids is alleged to have run a scheme where investors were promised “impossibly” high returns, and were repaid
with investments from newcomers.
According to an auditor’s report, R329m went into Davids’s accounts from over 2000 investors between November 2009 to July 2015.
Last July, the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) seized assets worth R138m from Platinum Forex.
Davids is out on a R100000 bail and will appear in Bellville Magistrate’s Court on September 27.