He walked into the dock with manicured nails and a smile plastered across his face.
Chatting happily with co-accused Herbert Theledi, Bobby Nehemiah Mosiane Motaung’s relaxed and clean appearance hid the fact he had spent a night behind bars.
But serious charges were put to him and Theledi on Thursday. There is fraud amounting to R143 million and an alternative charge of theft of R1m - all related to the controversial R1.2 billion Mbombela stadium tender saga.
“The accused are charged with fraud, alternatively forgery. [They] allegedly submitted a fraudulent tax clearance certificate in relation to the Mbombela stadium tender,” State advocate Patrick Nkuna told the Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court.
Nkuna informed the court that that the two directors at Lefika Emerging Equity (Pty) Ltd had attempted to acquire an overdraft at a bank using a fake payment invoice bearing details of the Mbombela municipality.
“The accused took this payment invoice, went to the bank and requested an overdraft. The bank wanted to verify the origin of the invoice. The municipality denied knowing the letter… confirmed it was not issued by them. Even the signature was not of the official concerned,” said Nkuna.
But Theledi’s lawyer, advocate Kenny Oldwadge, objected to Nkuna’s detailed explanation of the charges, saying he “was treading on very dangerous ground” by mentioning things not placed on the draft charge sheet.
“It’s sensationalism of the worst kind. I must object to any crimes that are not on the draft charge sheet,” said Oldwadge.
Nkuna said the pair, along with a third Lefika director, Chris Grib, had acted in common purpose when committing the alleged crime.
Grib, who was arrested in Cape Town, was not in court on Thursday and Hawks spokesman McIntosh Polela said he would appear on Friday.
In affidavits read out by their lawyers in court, Motaung and Theledi said they intended pleading not guilty and requested that they be allowed to keep their passports as they were businessmen who frequently travelled out of the country.
They were each released on R50 000 bail, but not before the court heard about the lavish lifestyles they led and properties they owned in the country’s plushest suburbs. The State did not oppose their bail.
A manager at his father’s Naturena-based soccer team, Motaung, 42, told the court he held directorship at various companies, including Kaizer Chiefs Holdings.
The father-of-three also revealed he earned R100 000 a month, lived in the leafy suburb of Houghton, drove around in cars worth R4m and had assets worth R12m.
Kaizer Chiefs spokesman Vina Mabasa told The Star that Motaung’s arrest “has nothing to do with Kaizer Chiefs”.
Motaung’s father Kaizer, the executive chairman of Kaizer Chiefs, said on Thursday he had “no comment to make now”.
Also revealing his cushy lifestyle was Theledi, a father-of-nine.
The 48-year-old said he held directorship of various companies and earns R115 000 a month. He owned a number of properties, including a R15m house in Hyde Park, Joburg, and a R2.4m home in Cape Town. - The Star