“Pot” Stemmet faces fees around theft of Lottery-funded tools
“Pot” Stemmet faces fees around theft of Lottery-funded tools
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Richard “Pot” Stemmet, left, and an investigator appointed through the National Lotteries Fee to analyze the Lottery-funded minstrel museum: Photo from an investigative report commissioned through the NLC
Richard “Pot” Stemmet is struggling with prosecution immediately after gear paid for with resources within the Lottery was faraway from a Cape Town building he rented.
Stemmet is to seem in court in January.
In accordance with a prosecutor the prison rates could involve fraud, elimination of kit that had been connected by the Sheriff and interfering that has a Town of Cape Town energy meter.
The charges stem from a complaint laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who, in a very civil court docket matter, is trying to find to Get well around R2.five-million in unpaid lease, fascination, lawful expenses and damage to a rented making in Crete Highway, in the economic region of Wetton in Cape Town.
The building was Formerly the headquarters with the Cape City Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) and is wherever a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating town’s hundreds of years-aged minstrel society was supposedly running.
Convicted legal Richard “Pot” Stemmet is dealing with prosecution for theft and fraud soon after gear compensated for with Lottery money was faraway from a Cape City building.
Stemmet was arrested by the Specialised Business Crime Unit on 16 October 2024 and explained to to seem from the Wynberg Justice of the peace’s Court on 21 November.
GroundUp attended court over the day although the make a difference wasn't placed on the court roll because the investigating officer did not deliver the docket to prosecutors. Stemmet has now been summonsed to look in court docket in January.
The felony charges stem from the grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who's trying to find to Get well about R2.5-million in unpaid rent, curiosity, legal costs and damage to a rented developing in Crete Highway, in the commercial space of Wetton in Cape Town.
The setting up was Formerly the headquarters of your Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA). This is when a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating town’s centuries-old minstrel tradition was supposedly working.
The premises also housed several organizations owned by Stemmet, whom police have referred to as a medicine high flier. Among the the companies Stemmet ran within the premises were being a hat production corporation and also a nightclub. Stemmet has long been arrested various periods for gun and drug-relevant offences and served time for armed robbery during the 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.
Although Stemmet is nevertheless to be presented by using a demand sheet, possible expenses, involve fraud, removing of equipment that had been attached through the Sheriff, and interfering by using a Metropolis of Cape Town electric power meter, In keeping with an electronic mail despatched to Meuwese by a senior prosecutor dealing with the issue.
A grant of almost R13-million to determine the minstrel museum was Component of a lot more than R64-million in Lottery money allotted on the CTMCA in between 2003 and 2017, with the majority of the money - about R54.3-million - paid out in the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 money a long time, according to Nationwide Lotteries Commission (NLC) once-a-year reports.
Stemmet was appointed a director on the CTMCA in September 1996 but resigned in December 2016. His spouse Zainonesa and daughter Raziah ongoing cat888 as two of numerous administrators in the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed to be a director in 2021.
In line with Meuwese, the building was leased to Stalph 164, an in depth Company of which Stemmet was amongst the directors. The corporate was deregistered by the businesses and Intellectual Home Commission (CIPC) in March 2023 for non-compliance in distributing once-a-year experiences.
A brand new entity With all the very same name was subsequently registered as a private company, but with Stemmet now not a director, In keeping with CIPC data. As a substitute, a loved one, Ra’ees Stemmet, and Alfonzo van Niekerk had been appointed as administrators.
About the night of 12 April 2021 and into the subsequent morning, the Crete Highway premises ended up cleared as well as the equipment was taken out, according to an affidavit by Meuwese. The products was moved to new premises rented by Stemmet in Mymoena Crescent within the Athlone industrial spot, which housed a number of of Stemmet’s corporations and a new “minstrel museum”, In line with a leaked investigative report commissioned via the NLC. The investigator also photographed the gear at the new premises.
Even so, the intended new museum internet site, such as outdated a person in Wetton, was perfectly clear of any of Cape City’s tourist routes and guests could not obtain it. There was no signage over the making indicating that it housed a museum.
Stemmet’s firms vacated the premises earlier this 12 months soon after he fell unwell.
The funding to ascertain a museum wasn't the one lottery grant which the CTMCA obtained. In 2021, the Affiliation was allotted R100,000 and R1.five-million in Covid relief grants. The NLC to begin with refused to expose who experienced obtained Covid funding but eventually relented less than media and parliamentary pressure.
Other lottery grants allocated to non-income entities connected to Stemmet and his spouse and children and his associates consist of R1.4-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 stories. Stemmet is usually a previous director in the committee and his wife, Zainonesa, is presently a director.
And, the Peninsula and District Carnival Affiliation, which is registered within the CTMCA’s former Crete Road places of work, was allocated R190,000 in 2019/twenty, and an additional R635,000 in 2021/22 to get a “craft, woodwork and design programme”. On the other hand, it appears that the 2021/22 payment was withheld following the NLC lifted questions about superb reviews connected to earlier funding obtained with the CTMCA.
GroundUp has confirmed the SIU is investigating the lottery funding gained via the CTMCA.
Also under investigation is really a R1-million payment because of the CTMCA to MDU Consulting Engineers, which subsequently paid out R500,000 of this to legal professionals performing in the purchase 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 during which the spouse of former NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba was a director, in direction of the acquisition on the mansion. Zibsimanzi obtained R4.eight-million to stage a rural soccer Match in Limpopo after Letwaba personally proposed that the grant be paid out to his spouse’s business.
GroundUp sent thoughts to Stemmet by way of SMS but he had not replied by the point of publication.