Cape Town - Two posh mansions owned by a Cape Flats pastor accused of running a multi-million rand Ponzi scheme has gone under the hammer.
On Tuesday, the five-bedroom Plattekloof house of Colin Davids, the director of Platinum Forex Group, was sold within 10 minutes at an auction held at the property in Melkhout Street.
Bidding started at R2 million and the highest bid received was a whopping R4.6m.
His six-bedroom Hermanus holiday house was auctioned earlier this month for R3.8m.
The houses were sold after Davids, 49, of the New Directions Church in Parow, lost his first round in court in May after a Western Cape High Court judge ordered that R100m in cash be paid back to his “investors”.
Davids faces charges of fraud, and being in contravention of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act (FAIS), for which he was not registered or licensed to perform.
Investors were allegedly promised “impossibly” high returns, and were repaid with investments from newcomers.
On Tuesday dozens of fancycars pulled up at the Plattekloof mansion.
The bidders were mostly white.
According to the auction brochure, the fancy double-storey house has five bedrooms, a triple garage, three bathrooms, a study, an entertainment and braai room overlooking a large pool.
Speaking to the Daily Voice shortly after the auction, a representative of Claremart Auction Group says 25 people attended the auction and the house was sold for R4.6m.
The pastor's Plattekloof home was sold for R4.6m. Picture: Supplied
However, he explained it takes seven working days for the property to be confirmed as sold.
“The Hermanus property, owned by the same owner, was also recently sold on Friday 9 June for R3.8m,” added the rep, who asked not to be named.
Last month, the Western Cape High Court said of the over R300m that was initially invested in Davids’ company, only about R100m remains.
It ruled that a curator oversee the process of distributing frozen funds to investors.
According to an auditor’s report, R329m went into Davids’ accounts from over 2 000 investors between November 2009 to July 2015.
Last July, the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) seized assets worth R138m from Platinum Forex.
Hawks spokesperson Captain Lloyd Ramovha also explained that the criminal investigations into Davids were at an advanced stage.
“He remains out on R100 000 bail after he was arrested on 22 June on charges of contravening the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services (FAIS) Act and Banks Act.”
Davids is to appear in Bellville Magistrate's Court on September 27.