Cape Town - “Cape Mafia” drug and gang kingpins have evaded justice for some time but one law expert may have a solution: Hit them in the pocket.
Legal expert Dr Annette Hübschle, global risk governance programme, faculty of law, University of Cape Town, referred to the infamous case of Prohibition era American gangster, Al Capone, who was a kingpin for seven years until his imprisonment at the age of 33.
The US government used federal tax laws to catch Capone and convict him on five counts of tax evasion in 1931, which included his income and unpaid taxes and he was sentenced to 11 years.
Hübschle said: ”In my research on organised crime networks, high-flyers and kingpins operating in any types of illicit and licit economies in and beyond South Africa, one common thread is that the people pulling the strings behind the scenes are usually untouchable.
“The best bet for organised crime units is to engage the services of financial investigators and forensic auditors - follow-the-money, undertake lifestyle audits and investigate whether gang bosses and organised crime queens/kingpins are tax compliant.
“The infamous Al Capone was found guilty and sentenced to prison for tax evasion.”
Several witnesses and judicial officers including police officials have been murdered in recent years while others have 24-hour bodyguards and some have had safety measures removed while these high-profile cases are running for years at priority courts.
The Department of Justice has mapped out their strategic plan on how they protect staff covering these cases of alleged Cape Mafia-style gangs and drug kingpins who have allegedly controlled and monopolised the underworld and the lack of convictions and the few successful cases which saw them imprisoned for their crimes.
These include alleged 28s gang boss, Ralph Stanfield, alleged Dixie gang leader and drug kingpin, Fadwaan “Vet” Murphy who is believed to be worth R53 million, Jerome “Donkey” Booysen, Nafiz Modack and others such as the JCY.
In the most recent incident, a gang war broke out between the Fancy Boys and Dixie Boys, in Murphy’s alleged territory in Lentegeur, Mitchells Plain, on Thursday night and Vet’s nephew, Glen Bird, 20, was one of the men killed.
Sources reveal Bird was set to take over Murphy’s alleged illicit business in the future.
In 2017, Bird was allegedly found with R500 000 in cash in Parklands during a vehicle search.
Police spokesperson Colonel Andre Traut said: “The circumstances surrounding a double murder and three attempted murders are being investigated by police following an incident at 5.30pm in Varing Street, Lentegeur. Occupants of a white VW Golf opened fire on a group of five men, and fled the scene. They are yet to be arrested.
“We have reason to believe the incident is gang-related. The anti-gang unit and additional forces have been deployed in the area, while detectives are probing the matter.”
The province’s Minister for Safety and Security, Albert Fritz, said they were hoping court cases of high-flyers would become so secure there would be no room for an appeal or collapse of cases or the killing of staff.
“We note the length of time some of these cases are taking with concern, as justice delayed is justice denied. The attacks on police officers and lawyers involved in high-profile cases is also something that must be noted with concern, and we call on the SAPS to look into these cases.
“We must, however, remember the importance of due process in all legal matters, especially in criminal court cases. The last thing anybody wants is for an entire trial to run its course and for the prosecution authorities to obtain a conviction, only for the accused to then appeal the ruling on a technicality and then for matters to be delayed even further.”
There have been few convictions and some freed, namely that of 28s gang boss, George “Geweld”’ Thomas, in June 2015. Thomas had orchestrated crimes from behind bars and was given seven life terms after he and 16 others were convicted of more than 150 charges.
In March 2014 Saliem John, the nephew of Colin Stanfield and cousin of Ralph Stanfield, was handed down three life terms for a series of charges relating to incidents in Valhalla Park under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act.
Quinton “Mr Big” Marinus was acquitted in 2010 after facing more than 100 charges.
Now the attention will be on Stanfield, whose case was transferred to the Cape Town Regional Court after running at the Khayelitsha Priority Court and is on the roll for August 17 with a list of 84 charges. Stanfield and his wife Nicole, sister Francesca and 16 others including police officers were arrested in 2014 for crimes relating to forgery, uttering, the illegal possession of ammunition and firearms and defeating the ends of justice. The State will attempt to prove Stanfield was involved in gun-licence racketeering with competency certificates of firearm licences and attempted appealing the case but lost it in December 2019.
Advocate Noorudien Hassan, who had represented alleged high-flyers, was murdered in front of his home in Lansdowne in November 2016 while sitting inside his car. The case was never solved.
While Murphy is back in the dock on Monday with his ex-wife Shafieka Murphy, as well as business partner Dominic Davidson, Paulsen and Desmond Jacobs are facing 229 charges relating to money laundering, dealing in drugs and racketeering.
While on trial, his sister, who was also a co-accused, Glenda Bird, who is Glen’s mother, died of stomach cancer and her lawyer, advocate Vernon Jantjies, was murdered at a garage in Lentegeur in December 2019. Glenda was also married to convicted Mitchells Plain serial killer and rapist, Keith Bird.
Murphy’s assets, worth R53m, has since been seized by the Asset Forfeiture Unit.
The Nafiz Modack, Jacques Cronje, Ricardo Morgan and Zane Killian case continues on August 17 at the Blue Downs Magistrate’s Court for bail applications.
Modack, Morgan and Killian are facing murder charges of anti-gang unit commander, Lieutenant Colonel Charl Kinnear, who was shot and killed in an assassination outside his home in Bishop Lavis in September 2020. Kinnear’s security had been removed prior to this and this is part of investigations.
During bail proceedings, magistrate Abram Mashala, who presided over the case, was shot and wounded at a car wash in Mfuleni together with a high-ranking police officer.
Jerome “Donkey'' Booysen, alleged Sexy Gang boss, who has escaped several attempts on his life, is also appearing in court together with Mark Lifman, Andre Naude and others at the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court.
The State is set to prove that with the aid of the 27s gang they conspired to murder “Steroid King,” Brian Wainstein, in his home in Constantia in August 2017. Wainstein had illegally distributed steroids as far as Dublin and had spent time in prison.
Advocate Tshilidzi Ramathikhithi, acting regional head, Western Cape for the Department of Justice, said: “The crime intelligence unit and DOJ and risk unit based on the assessment report presented, approves protection services to the presiding magistrate and his/her family for a defined period, which then is followed by the follow-up threat assessment as the case progresses.”
Weekend Argus