“Pot” Stemmet faces prices around theft of Lottery-funded products
“Pot” Stemmet faces prices around theft of Lottery-funded products
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Richard “Pot” Stemmet, remaining, and an investigator appointed by the Countrywide Lotteries Commission to research the Lottery-funded minstrel museum: Photo from an investigative report commissioned through the NLC
Richard “Pot” Stemmet is facing prosecution immediately after gear paid out for with money with the Lottery was faraway from a Cape Town making he rented.
Stemmet is to look in court docket in January.
In accordance with a prosecutor the felony prices could contain fraud, removal of kit that had been attached from the Sheriff and interfering having a Town of Cape Town electricity meter.
The costs stem from the complaint laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who, in the civil court docket matter, is trying to find to Get better more than R2.five-million in unpaid hire, interest, legal charges and harm to a rented setting up in Crete Road, in the industrial location of Wetton in Cape Town.
The constructing was Beforehand the headquarters of your Cape City Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) and is particularly where a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating town’s generations-previous minstrel culture was supposedly functioning.
Convicted legal Richard “Pot” Stemmet is dealing with prosecution for theft and fraud just after products compensated for with Lottery money was faraway from a Cape City developing.
Stemmet was arrested because of the Specialised Commercial Crime Unit on 16 October 2024 and instructed to look inside the Wynberg Justice of the peace’s Court docket on 21 November.
GroundUp attended court docket on the working day however the make a difference was not placed on the court roll as the investigating officer didn't supply the docket to prosecutors. Stemmet has now been summonsed to seem in court in January.
The criminal charges stem from the grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who is looking for to Get better about R2.5-million in unpaid hire, curiosity, lawful charges and harm to a rented constructing in Crete Road, in the commercial area of Wetton in Cape Town.
The making was previously the headquarters with the Cape City Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA). This is where a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating the town’s hundreds of years-aged minstrel culture was supposedly running.
The premises also housed numerous corporations owned by Stemmet, whom police have referred to as a medication substantial flier. Among the the companies Stemmet ran within the premises were a hat manufacturing business along with a nightclub. Stemmet has become arrested various periods for gun and drug-linked offences and served time for armed theft inside the 1980s.
According to an SMS despatched to Meuwese with the investigating officer, Stemmet has now been summonsed to appear in court docket on 30 January 2025.
Whilst Stemmet is nevertheless to become offered with a cost sheet, probable costs, include things like fraud, removing of equipment that had been connected because of the Sheriff, and interfering which has a City of Cape Town electric power meter, according to an electronic mail despatched to Meuwese by a senior prosecutor managing the matter.
A grant of just about R13-million to determine the minstrel museum was Component of more than R64-million in Lottery resources allotted for the CTMCA among 2003 and 2017, with the bulk of The cash - above R54.three-million - paid in the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 economical several years, Based on Nationwide Lotteries Fee (NLC) annual stories.
Stemmet was appointed a director of the CTMCA in September 1996 but resigned in December 2016. His wife Zainonesa and daughter Raziah continued lottovip as two of various directors of your organisation. Stemmet was reappointed being a director in 2021.
Based on Meuwese, the setting up was leased to Stalph 164, a close corporation of which Stemmet was amongst the administrators. The business was deregistered by the businesses and Mental Residence Fee (CIPC) in March 2023 for non-compliance in publishing once-a-year experiences.
A brand new entity With all the very same title was subsequently registered as A non-public organization, but with Stemmet no longer a director, Based on CIPC records. Instead, a relative, Ra’ees Stemmet, and Alfonzo van Niekerk have been appointed as directors.
To the evening of twelve April 2021 and into the following early morning, the Crete Road premises ended up cleared as well as the equipment was eliminated, according to an affidavit by Meuwese. The tools was moved to new premises rented by Stemmet in Mymoena Crescent in the Athlone industrial location, which housed quite a few of Stemmet’s companies and also a new “minstrel museum”, according to a leaked investigative report commissioned through the NLC. The investigator also photographed the tools at the new premises.
Even so, the intended new museum internet site, much like the previous one particular in Wetton, was properly far from any of Cape Town’s vacationer routes and website visitors could not obtain it. There was no signage about the constructing indicating that it housed a museum.
Stemmet’s organizations vacated the premises before this yr just after he fell ill.
The funding to determine a museum wasn't the sole lottery grant the CTMCA received. In 2021, the association was allotted R100,000 and R1.five-million in Covid aid grants. The NLC at first refused to reveal who had acquired Covid funding but finally relented below media and parliamentary strain.
Other lottery grants allocated to non-income entities connected to Stemmet and his relatives and his associates involve R1.four-million for that Cape Cultural Carnival and Situations Committee in 2019/twenty, and an additional R500,000 in 2021/22, In accordance with NLC annual reports. Stemmet is usually a former director from the committee and his spouse, Zainonesa, is at this time a director.
And, the Peninsula and District Carnival Association, which is registered within the CTMCA’s former Crete Highway offices, was allotted R190,000 in 2019/twenty, and a further R635,000 in 2021/22 for your “craft, woodwork and design and style programme”. Nevertheless, it appears that the 2021/22 payment was withheld once the NLC lifted questions about exceptional stories associated with previously funding acquired via the CTMCA.
GroundUp has confirmed which the SIU is investigating the lottery funding received with the CTMCA.
Also beneath investigation is often a R1-million payment via the CTMCA to MDU Consulting Engineers, which subsequently paid out R500,000 of this to lawyers performing in the acquisition of a R27-million mansion for previous NLC Board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
MDU also acted for a conduit for an additional R3-m payment by Zibsimanzi, an organization in which the spouse of former NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba was a director, to the purchase from the mansion. Zibsimanzi gained R4.8-million to stage a rural soccer Match in Limpopo right after Letwaba Individually advisable which the grant be paid to his wife’s corporation.
GroundUp sent issues to Stemmet via SMS but he had not replied by the point of publication.