R2.5 million City of Cape Town tender fraud case set down for Thursday

The R2.5 million tender fraud case against two directors and four employees of Ilitha Painters and Decorators – trading as The Construction Company (TCC) – and two City officials is set to continue on Thursday in the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court.

Currently out on bail, the eight accused are: TCC directors Asif Khan and Abdul Karrim Khan; employees Uwais Khan, Irfaan Khan, Craig Kannemeyer and Abdulatief Abrahams; and City employees Adam Majiet and Alistair Stanbul.

Only seven of the accused appeared before Magistrate Ronel Oliver on Friday morning to extend their bond as the State said investigations into the matter were yet to be completed. Advocate Reuben Liddell, representing the Khan brothers and their employees, told the court Kannemeyer was abroad but would return when “the matter reaches a stage when it can be finalised”.

On Friday, Liddell quizzed the case’s investigating officer Andre Pekeur of the SAPS Commercial Crimes Unit about the status of the investigation which has been ongoing since October 2020. Asked what had been finalised and what was still outstanding, Pekeur, who has been in charge of the case since November 2021, said the investigation would have been finalised by now but for problems over a cash flow analysis in which he had found discrepancies and needed more time to sort out.

Pekeur also told the court the cybercrime unit’s analysis of the eight cellphones and eight computers that had been taken during a search and seizure operation of the offices of the accused, had run into problems due to load shedding. He however said the cybercrime unit had assured him they would be working overtime and would be on track to complete their work in a month’s time. TCC, a service provider to the City, is also charged with the eight accused.

The State’s case is TCC, its employees and directors allegedly supplied false invoices to the City and allegedly misrepresented some of the work they charged for as completely finalised. Majiet and Stanbul allegedly allowed the invoices to be authorised even though they knew the work was not completed. The case stems from an October 2020 complaint lodged with the police by anti-crime activist Hanif Loonat and relates to a housing tender for the maintenance of the City-owned housing units.

When he lodged the complaint, Loonat alleged Ilitha Painters and Decorators was involved in a corrupt relationship with the City. Last week Loonat, who has joined forces with Cape Coloured Congress City councillor Fadiel Adams, welcomed the news the City’s internal forensic report into the matter of the tender that led to the case has been shared with police.

The City said the forensic report had also been released to the auditor-general and the City’s multiparty municipal public accounts committee (MPAC), but the police had asked it not be shared further so as to not compromise the criminal investigation.