“Pot” Stemmet faces costs in excess of theft of Lottery-funded equipment
“Pot” Stemmet faces costs in excess of theft of Lottery-funded equipment
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Richard “Pot” Stemmet, still left, and an investigator appointed by the Nationwide Lotteries Commission to investigate the Lottery-funded minstrel museum: Photograph from an investigative report commissioned through the NLC
Richard “Pot” Stemmet is experiencing prosecution after equipment compensated for with money from your Lottery was faraway from a Cape Town developing he rented.
Stemmet is to look in court in January.
According to a prosecutor the felony costs could include fraud, removal of apparatus that were hooked up through the Sheriff and interfering which has a City of Cape Town electric power meter.
The fees stem from the complaint laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who, within a civil courtroom subject, is seeking to recover over R2.five-million in unpaid hire, desire, authorized expenditures and damage to a rented creating in Crete Road, in the economic place of Wetton in Cape Town.
The developing was Beforehand the headquarters of your Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) and is also exactly where a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating town’s centuries-outdated minstrel culture was supposedly running.
Convicted criminal Richard “Pot” Stemmet is experiencing prosecution for theft and fraud following devices compensated for with Lottery funds was removed from a Cape Town making.
Stemmet was arrested by the Specialised Industrial Crime Unit on 16 October 2024 and informed to appear while in the Wynberg Justice of the peace’s Courtroom on 21 November.
GroundUp attended courtroom about the day nevertheless the issue was not put on the courtroom roll because the investigating officer didn't supply the docket to prosecutors. Stemmet has now been summonsed to seem in court in January.
The felony fees stem from a grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who is trying to get to Get well over R2.five-million in unpaid hire, curiosity, lawful fees and harm to a rented developing in Crete Street, in the economic location of Wetton in Cape City.
The setting up was Formerly the headquarters on the Cape City Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA). This is when a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating town’s generations-old minstrel culture was supposedly operating.
The premises also housed numerous firms owned by Stemmet, whom law enforcement have referred to as a medications significant flier. Between the businesses Stemmet ran from your premises had been a hat manufacturing company in addition to a nightclub. Stemmet has been arrested quite a few moments for gun and drug-connected offences and served time for armed theft inside the nineteen eighties.
In line with an SMS despatched to Meuwese through the investigating officer, Stemmet has now been summonsed to look in court on 30 January 2025.
While Stemmet is yet for being offered which has a demand sheet, feasible expenses, include things like fraud, removing of kit that were connected because of the Sheriff, and interfering which has a Town of Cape Town electrical power meter, As outlined by an e mail sent to Meuwese by a senior prosecutor managing the make any difference.
A grant of virtually R13-million to establish the minstrel museum was part of much more than R64-million in Lottery cash allocated to your CTMCA among 2003 and 2017, with the majority of the money - about R54.3-million - paid out in the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 fiscal years, In line with Countrywide Lotteries Fee (NLC) annual reviews.
Stemmet was appointed a director with the CTMCA in September 1996 but resigned in December 2016. His spouse Zainonesa and daughter Raziah ongoing หวย หุ้น ช่อง 9 as two of numerous administrators in the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed to be a director in 2021.
As outlined by Meuwese, the building was leased to Stalph 164, an in depth Company of which Stemmet was amongst the directors. The organization was deregistered by the Companies and Intellectual House Commission (CIPC) in March 2023 for non-compliance in distributing yearly stories.
A different entity with the exact same identify was subsequently registered as A personal corporation, but with Stemmet no more a director, In line with CIPC information. Rather, a family member, Ra’ees Stemmet, and Alfonzo van Niekerk were being appointed as directors.
On the night of 12 April 2021 and into the next early morning, the Crete Street premises were being cleared along with the equipment was taken out, according to an affidavit by Meuwese. The products was moved to new premises rented by Stemmet in Mymoena Crescent during the Athlone industrial location, which housed various of Stemmet’s businesses as well as a new “minstrel museum”, As outlined by a leaked investigative report commissioned via the NLC. The investigator also photographed the equipment at The brand new premises.
However, the meant new museum web page, like the aged a person in Wetton, was very well faraway from any of Cape Town’s vacationer routes and website visitors could not obtain it. There was no signage about the creating indicating that it housed a museum.
Stemmet’s companies vacated the premises before this year immediately after he fell ill.
The funding to ascertain a museum wasn't the only lottery grant the CTMCA been given. In 2021, the association was allocated R100,000 and R1.5-million in Covid reduction grants. The NLC in the beginning refused to expose who had obtained Covid funding but eventually relented less than media and parliamentary pressure.
Other lottery grants allocated to non-revenue entities connected to Stemmet and his household and his associates include things like R1.4-million to the Cape Cultural Carnival and Functions Committee in 2019/20, and an extra R500,000 in 2021/22, according to NLC once-a-year studies. Stemmet is actually a previous director on the committee and his wife, Zainonesa, is now a director.
And, the Peninsula and District Carnival Association, that is registered within the CTMCA’s former Crete Street places of work, was allocated R190,000 in 2019/twenty, and an extra R635,000 in 2021/22 for any “craft, woodwork and structure programme”. Even so, it seems that the 2021/22 payment was withheld once the NLC raised questions about exceptional stories related to earlier funding received through the CTMCA.
GroundUp has confirmed that the SIU is investigating the lottery funding obtained from the CTMCA.
Also below investigation is actually a R1-million payment through the CTMCA to MDU Consulting Engineers, which in turn compensated R500,000 of this to lawyers performing in the purchase of the R27-million mansion for former NLC Board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
MDU also acted as a conduit for an additional R3-m payment by Zibsimanzi, an organization in which the spouse of previous NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba was a director, in direction of the acquisition on the mansion. Zibsimanzi received R4.8-million to phase a rural soccer Event in Limpopo soon after Letwaba Individually suggested the grant be paid out to his spouse’s company.
GroundUp sent inquiries to Stemmet by using SMS but he experienced not replied by the point of publication.