Richard “Pot” Stemmet, remaining, and an investigator appointed from the National Lotteries Fee to research the Lottery-funded minstrel museum: Image from an investigative report commissioned with the NLC
Richard “Pot” Stemmet is going through prosecution immediately after tools compensated for with funds within the Lottery was removed from a Cape Town building he rented.
Stemmet is to appear in courtroom in January.
Based on a prosecutor the legal rates could contain fraud, removal of kit that were hooked up from the Sheriff and interfering by using a Metropolis of Cape Town energy meter.
The fees stem from the grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who, in a very civil courtroom subject, is trying to get to recover in excess of R2.five-million in unpaid hire, curiosity, authorized prices and damage to a rented making in Crete Highway, in the industrial region of Wetton in Cape Town.
The creating was Earlier the headquarters of the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) and is also the place a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating the city’s hundreds of years-previous minstrel lifestyle was supposedly functioning.
Convicted felony Richard “Pot” Stemmet is dealing with prosecution for theft and fraud following gear paid for with Lottery funds was faraway from a Cape Town creating.
Stemmet was arrested by the Specialised Business Crime Device on 16 Oct 2024 and told to look inside the Wynberg Justice of the peace’s Court on 21 November.
GroundUp attended court docket within the working day although the issue wasn't put on the court roll as the investigating officer did not supply the docket to prosecutors. Stemmet has now been summonsed to seem in courtroom in January.
The prison expenses stem from a criticism laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who's looking for to Recuperate in excess of R2.five-million in unpaid lease, fascination, authorized charges and damage to a rented developing in Crete Highway, in the economic place of Wetton in Cape City.
The making was Earlier the headquarters in the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA). This is where a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating town’s hundreds of years-previous minstrel society was supposedly functioning.
The premises also housed several companies owned by Stemmet, whom law enforcement have called a drugs higher flier. Between the companies Stemmet ran in the premises ended up a hat producing corporation along with a nightclub. Stemmet has become arrested various occasions for gun and drug-related offences and served time for armed theft in the 1980s.
In line with an SMS sent to Meuwese through the investigating officer, Stemmet has now been summonsed to appear in court docket on 30 January 2025.
Though Stemmet is however being presented which has a cost sheet, achievable costs, consist of fraud, elimination of kit that had been attached by the Sheriff, and interfering using a Town of Cape City electrical energy meter, In keeping with an email despatched to Meuwese by a senior prosecutor handling the issue.
A grant of just about R13-million to establish the minstrel museum was Section of much more than R64-million in Lottery funds allotted to the CTMCA in between 2003 and 2017, with the bulk of the money - over R54.three-million - paid out inside the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 monetary several years, In accordance with National Lotteries Fee (NLC) yearly reviews.
Stemmet was appointed a director of your CTMCA in September 1996 but resigned in December 2016. His wife Zainonesa and daughter Raziah ongoing ตรวจ สลากกินแบ่ง รัฐบาล as two of quite a few administrators from the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed as a director in 2021.
According to Meuwese, the making was leased to Stalph 164, an in depth Company of which Stemmet was among the administrators. The organization was deregistered by the Companies and Mental Property Commission (CIPC) in March 2023 for non-compliance in distributing annual stories.
A new entity Together with the exact name was subsequently registered as a private organization, but with Stemmet not a director, As outlined by CIPC documents. In its place, a relative, Ra’ees Stemmet, and Alfonzo van Niekerk were being appointed as administrators.
About the evening of twelve April 2021 and into the subsequent morning, the Crete Road premises had been cleared plus the equipment was taken off, As outlined by an affidavit by Meuwese. The products was moved to new premises rented by Stemmet in Mymoena Crescent inside the Athlone industrial area, which housed several of Stemmet’s enterprises along with a new “minstrel museum”, In keeping with a leaked investigative report commissioned through the NLC. The investigator also photographed the machines at The brand new premises.
Nonetheless, the intended new museum web-site, such as old 1 in Wetton, was nicely far from any of Cape City’s vacationer routes and people could not entry it. There was no signage about the constructing indicating that it housed a museum.
Stemmet’s firms vacated the premises earlier this 12 months immediately after he fell ill.
The funding to determine a museum was not the one lottery grant which the CTMCA acquired. In 2021, the Affiliation was allocated R100,000 and R1.5-million in Covid aid grants. The NLC originally refused to expose who experienced received Covid funding but eventually relented below media and parliamentary force.
Other lottery grants allotted to non-revenue entities linked to Stemmet and his relatives and his associates involve R1.four-million for the Cape Cultural Carnival and Occasions Committee in 2019/20, and an extra R500,000 in 2021/22, according to NLC once-a-year experiences. Stemmet is usually a previous director in the committee and his wife, Zainonesa, is now a director.
And, the Peninsula and District Carnival Association, which is registered for the CTMCA’s former Crete Highway offices, was allotted R190,000 in 2019/20, and an additional R635,000 in 2021/22 to get a “craft, woodwork and structure programme”. On the other hand, it seems that the 2021/22 payment was withheld following the NLC elevated questions on fantastic reports connected with before funding received with the CTMCA.
GroundUp has verified the SIU is investigating the lottery funding been given from the CTMCA.
Also beneath investigation can be a R1-million payment via the CTMCA to MDU Consulting Engineers, which subsequently paid out R500,000 of this to attorneys acting in the acquisition of a R27-million mansion for former NLC Board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
MDU also acted as being a conduit for an extra R3-m payment by Zibsimanzi, a corporation wherein the spouse of former NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba was a director, to the purchase of your mansion. Zibsimanzi gained R4.8-million to phase a rural soccer Event in Limpopo just after Letwaba personally proposed that the grant be paid out to his spouse’s firm.
GroundUp despatched concerns to Stemmet by means of SMS but he experienced not replied by the time of publication.