“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, remaining, and an investigator appointed through the Countrywide Lotteries Fee to analyze the Lottery-funded minstrel museum: Photo from an investigative report commissioned from the NLC
Richard “Pot” Stemmet is going through 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.
Based on a prosecutor the felony expenses could include fraud, elimination of kit that had been connected via the Sheriff and interfering using a Town of Cape City electrical energy meter.
The costs stem from a grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who, in a very civil court docket matter, is in search of to Get well about R2.five-million in unpaid lease, curiosity, legal expenses and damage to a rented building in Crete Highway, in the commercial location of Wetton in Cape Town.
The building was Beforehand the headquarters on the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) and is also where a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating town’s centuries-outdated minstrel culture was supposedly running.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 machines paid for with Lottery money was faraway from a Cape City building.
Stemmet was arrested through the Specialised Business Criminal offense Device on sixteen October 2024 and instructed to seem during the Wynberg Justice of the peace’s Court docket on 21 November.
GroundUp attended courtroom to the day even so the subject was not placed on the court docket roll since the investigating officer didn't supply the docket to prosecutors. Stemmet has now been summonsed to seem in courtroom in January.
The felony rates stem from a complaint laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who is looking for to Get better above R2.five-million in unpaid hire, desire, lawful expenditures and damage to a rented creating in Crete Highway, in the commercial location of Wetton in Cape Town.
The making was Formerly the headquarters of the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA). This is where a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating the town’s generations-previous minstrel society was supposedly working.
The premises also housed various companies owned by Stemmet, whom police have referred to as a drugs higher flier. Amid the businesses Stemmet ran from the premises had been a hat manufacturing company plus a nightclub. Stemmet has been arrested a number of occasions for gun and drug-linked offences and served time for armed theft in the 1980s.
In line with an SMS despatched to Meuwese via the investigating officer, Stemmet has now been summonsed to seem in court docket on 30 January 2025.
Although Stemmet is still for being presented that has a charge sheet, feasible charges, involve fraud, removal of kit that were attached via the Sheriff, and interfering having a Metropolis of Cape City electricity meter, In line with an e mail despatched to Meuwese by a senior prosecutor handling the subject.
A grant of almost R13-million to ascertain the minstrel museum was Component of more than R64-million in Lottery funds allotted to your CTMCA concerning 2003 and 2017, with the majority of the money - around R54.3-million - compensated from the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 fiscal several years, In line with National Lotteries Commission (NLC) once-a-year reviews.
Stemmet was appointed a director of your CTMCA in September 1996 but resigned in December 2016. His wife Zainonesa and daughter Raziah continued cat888 as two of several administrators from the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed as a director in 2021.
Based on Meuwese, the setting up was leased to Stalph 164, a close Company of which Stemmet was certainly one of the directors. The corporate was deregistered by the businesses and Intellectual House Fee (CIPC) in March 2023 for non-compliance in submitting annual stories.
A brand new entity Along with the same name was subsequently registered as a private organization, but with Stemmet no more a director, according to CIPC records. As an alternative, a member of the family, Ra’ees Stemmet, and Alfonzo van Niekerk had been appointed as administrators.
To the evening of twelve April 2021 and into the next morning, the Crete Highway premises were being cleared plus the machinery was eradicated, As outlined by an affidavit by Meuwese. The products was moved to new premises rented by Stemmet in Mymoena Crescent within the Athlone industrial space, which housed numerous of Stemmet’s organizations in addition to a new “minstrel museum”, As outlined by a leaked investigative report commissioned by the NLC. The investigator also photographed the tools at the new premises.
On the other hand, the intended new museum web-site, such as outdated just one in Wetton, was very well from any of Cape Town’s vacationer routes and website visitors could not access it. There was no signage on the setting up indicating that it housed a museum.
Stemmet’s corporations vacated the premises earlier this 12 months soon after he fell unwell.
The funding to ascertain a museum wasn't the sole lottery grant which the CTMCA acquired. In 2021, the association was allocated R100,000 and R1.5-million in Covid relief grants. The NLC in the beginning refused to reveal who had gained Covid funding but lastly relented below media and parliamentary force.
Other lottery grants allotted to non-gain entities associated with Stemmet and his family and his associates contain R1.4-million for the Cape Cultural Carnival and Activities Committee in 2019/20, and an extra R500,000 in 2021/22, according to NLC once-a-year stories. Stemmet is often a former director of the committee and his spouse, Zainonesa, is at the moment a director.
And, the Peninsula and District Carnival Association, which happens to be registered with the CTMCA’s previous Crete Road places of work, was allocated R190,000 in 2019/20, and an extra R635,000 in 2021/22 to get a “craft, woodwork and structure programme”. On the other hand, it appears that the 2021/22 payment was withheld following the NLC lifted questions on exceptional reports linked to previously funding been given by the CTMCA.
GroundUp has confirmed that the SIU is investigating the lottery funding received from the CTMCA.
Also below investigation is really 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 extra R3-m payment by Zibsimanzi, a business by which the spouse of previous NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba was a director, toward the purchase on the mansion. Zibsimanzi received R4.8-million to phase a rural soccer Event in Limpopo right after Letwaba Individually recommended that the grant be paid out to his spouse’s enterprise.
GroundUp sent concerns to Stemmet by means of SMS but he experienced not replied by the point of publication.