A Rolls-Royce Phantom, BMW G30 520d Series Sedan, and BMW 7 Series Sedan M760Li xDrive – all worth R14m are just some of the luxury vehicles attached to a preservation order granted by the Pretoria high court.

The vehicles belong to former National Lotteries Commission (NLC) board members, and senior employees accused of hijacking non-profit organisations to apply for grants.

The SIU is probing allegations of corruption and maladministration linked to former NLC chair Alfred Ntshengedzeni Nevhutanda and his colleagues.

The unit, which obtained a preservation order alongside the National Prosecuting Authority’s Asset Forfeiture Unit to freeze assets worth millions, said there was no proper oversight of the projects as the management was allegedly involved in the theft.

The order preserved the three high-end vehicles including four properties in Polokwane and Louis Trichardt in Limpopo.

Spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said in some instances, existing NPOs were hijacked, and the original members were replaced by different members linked to NLC board members or senior staff.

“The properties are preserved pending an application for a forfeiture order and registered owners are interdicted from dealing in any manner with the frozen properties.

“Previously, the AFU and SIU obtained two preservation orders related to the NLC investigation, which includes 14 immovable properties with an approximate value of R67m,” Kganyago said.

In its investigation, the SIU found alleged fraud and corruption at the NLC to the value of approximately R344m. 

The following assets have been attached to the preservation order:

An office park in Polokwane, which was purchased in November 2015 for over R1m.

“A total of R264,400 and R741,080 stolen NLC funds were transferred to pay for the property. The stolen funds originated from grant funding of R80m paid by the NLC to Community Development Organisation Lulamisa for hosting the Commonwealth Games in Durban,” Kganyago said.

He said Lulamisa was hijacked to apply for the grant and the property was registered in the name of 2SP Investment Trust, a trust founded by Nevhutanda, who was chairperson of the NLC board at the time.

A vacant land in Louis Trichardt, which was purchased in July 2017 for R750,000 was also preserved. 

“A total of R600,000 and R20,961 stolen NLC funds were transferred to a conveyancing firm to pay [for] the property. The stolen funds originated from grant funding of R23.720,000 paid by the NLC to the Nunnovation Africa Foundation NPC, to facilitate sports tournaments.”

The property was registered in the name of Fhulufhelo Promise Kharivhe, who is the live-in partner of Mukondeleli Collin Tshisimba.

“Both Kharivhe and Tshisimba are implicated in the first NLC preservation orders, where properties purchased with stolen NLC funds were registered in their names.”

The court also preserved portion of a farm in Brakspruit, Limpopo, purchased in September 2017 for R780,000.

“A total of R750,000 and R30,000 stolen NLC funds were transferred to pay for the property. The stolen funds originated from grant funding of R9.5m paid by the NLC to Limpopo Recreation Providers NPO for promoting cycling in Limpopo.

“When the NLC followed up on the project, they could not find the NPO at the address supplied in the application form. The NPO was subsequently declared delinquent as they did not provide the NLC with progress reports. The property was registered in the name of Tshisimba.”

Erf 2580 Louis Trichardt Extension 11, which was purchased in September 2019 for R900,000 allegedly stolen from NLC funds has also been preserved. 

“The stolen funds originated from grant funding of R10m paid by the NLC to Light Up Your World Foundation NPO [Light Up]. Light Up was also hijacked to apply for an NLC grant. The property was registered in the name of Twala Front, a private company with Kharivhe as its sole director.”

The order also includes BMW G30 520d Series Sedan, which was bought in July 2017 for R995,000.

A total of R595,000 stolen NLC funds was transferred to BMW Finance to settle the outstanding balance on the vehicle.

“The stolen NLC funds originated from grant funding of R23.720,000 paid by the NLC to Nunnovation NPO for promoting a healthy lifestyle and constructing a gymnasium. The BMW was registered in the name of Kharivhe.

A BMW 7 Series Sedan M760Li xDrive was purchased in September 2017 for R2.8m.

Half of that amount was allegedly stolen from NLC funds and used towards a deposit.

The vehicle was registered in the name of Meshack Makhubela, the son-in-law of Nevhutanda.

A Rolls-Royce Phantom was bought in August 2016 by Nevhuthanda for R6.3m.

Kganyago said over R4.5m of stolen NLC funds was transferred to the dealership in five payments.  

“The first payment of R1m originated from an NLC grant payment of R55.4m to Tshikovha Graduate Academy to train the community about environment, water, and sanitation.

“The second payment of R1m originated from an NLC grant payment of R24.9m to the South African Sport Confederation and Olympic Committee for promoting and developing high-performance sports.

“The third payment of R574,185.13 originated from an NLC grant payment of R25m to Simba Community Development Foundation NPO, for rebuilding a secondary school torched in Vuwani Village during community protests. The fourth and fifth payments of R1m each originated from an NLC grant payment of R80m to Lulamisa.

“The Rolls-Royce was registered in the name of Malwandla Solly Siweya, aka Rirhandzu Siweya [Siweya], who is one of the ‘new’ members of the hijacked Lulamisa. Lulamisa contributed the last R2m towards the purchase price of the Rolls-Royce, so Siweya must have known that the R2m originated from NLC funds.”

chabalalaj@sowetan.co.za