“Pot” Stemmet faces costs around theft of Lottery-funded gear
“Pot” Stemmet faces costs around theft of Lottery-funded gear
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Richard “Pot” Stemmet, still left, and an investigator appointed because of the Nationwide Lotteries Fee to analyze the Lottery-funded minstrel museum: Photograph from an investigative report commissioned via the NLC
Richard “Pot” Stemmet is experiencing prosecution right after products compensated for with cash from your Lottery was removed from a Cape Town creating he rented.
Stemmet is to seem in courtroom in January.
As outlined by a prosecutor the felony fees could include things like fraud, elimination of equipment that were connected through the Sheriff and interfering by using a Town of Cape City electrical power meter.
The fees stem from a grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who, in a civil courtroom make any difference, is trying to find to Recuperate around R2.five-million in unpaid rent, curiosity, lawful expenses and damage to a rented creating in Crete Road, in the industrial spot of Wetton in Cape City.
The making was previously the headquarters of your Cape City Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) which is where a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating town’s generations-aged minstrel lifestyle was supposedly working.
Convicted prison Richard “Pot” Stemmet is going through prosecution for theft and fraud soon after devices paid out for with Lottery money was faraway from a Cape City making.
Stemmet was arrested because of the Specialised Commercial Criminal offense Unit on 16 Oct 2024 and advised to look while in the Wynberg Justice of the peace’s Courtroom on 21 November.
GroundUp attended court docket about the working day even so the matter was not placed on the courtroom roll since the investigating officer didn't produce the docket to prosecutors. Stemmet has now been summonsed to look in courtroom in January.
The felony rates stem from the grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, that is in search of to Get well in excess of R2.5-million in unpaid lease, fascination, lawful expenditures and damage to a rented making in Crete Street, in the commercial region of Wetton in Cape Town.
The building was Beforehand the headquarters on 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 working.
The premises also housed a number of enterprises owned by Stemmet, whom police have described as a prescription drugs substantial flier. Among the businesses Stemmet ran from the premises have been a hat production enterprise along with a nightclub. Stemmet has actually been arrested several occasions for gun and drug-associated offences and served time for armed robbery while in the eighties.
In keeping with an SMS despatched to Meuwese via the investigating officer, Stemmet has now been summonsed to look in court docket on 30 January 2025.
Though Stemmet is nevertheless to get presented that has a cost sheet, feasible rates, include things like fraud, removal of kit that were connected from the Sheriff, and interfering which has a City of Cape Town energy meter, In line with an electronic mail sent to Meuwese by a senior prosecutor handling the subject.
A grant of just about R13-million to determine the minstrel museum was Portion of in excess of R64-million in Lottery funds allotted to the CTMCA in between 2003 and 2017, with the bulk of The cash - in excess of R54.3-million - paid within the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 financial many years, In line with National Lotteries Fee (NLC) annual reports.
Stemmet was appointed a director of your CTMCA in September 1996 but resigned in December 2016. His wife Zainonesa and daughter Raziah ongoing หวย ลาว ออก วัน นี้ สด as two of many directors of your organisation. Stemmet was reappointed being a director in 2021.
In accordance with Meuwese, the setting up was leased to Stalph 164, an in depth Company of which Stemmet was certainly one of the administrators. The corporation was deregistered by the Companies and Intellectual House Fee (CIPC) in March 2023 for non-compliance in publishing once-a-year reports.
A fresh entity Along with the exact identify was subsequently registered as A personal company, but with Stemmet now not a director, Based on CIPC records. Rather, a family member, Ra’ees Stemmet, and Alfonzo van Niekerk were being appointed as administrators.
About the evening of twelve April 2021 and into the following early morning, the Crete Road premises were being cleared plus the machinery was eradicated, As outlined by an affidavit by Meuwese. The tools was moved to new premises rented by Stemmet in Mymoena Crescent within the Athlone industrial place, which housed numerous of Stemmet’s enterprises as well as a new “minstrel museum”, according to a leaked investigative report commissioned through the NLC. The investigator also photographed the devices at The brand new premises.
Having said that, the meant new museum site, just like the old 1 in Wetton, was nicely away from any of Cape Town’s vacationer routes and website visitors could not access it. There was no signage over the making indicating that it housed a museum.
Stemmet’s corporations vacated the premises previously this year just after he fell sick.
The funding to determine a museum was not the one lottery grant which the CTMCA acquired. In 2021, the Affiliation was allotted R100,000 and R1.5-million in Covid reduction grants. The NLC originally refused to expose who experienced received Covid funding but eventually relented below media and parliamentary pressure.
Other lottery grants allocated to non-gain entities linked to Stemmet and his relatives and his associates contain R1.4-million to the Cape Cultural Carnival and Functions Committee in 2019/20, and a further R500,000 in 2021/22, In line with NLC yearly reviews. Stemmet is actually a former director of your committee and his spouse, Zainonesa, is at present a director.
And, the Peninsula and District Carnival Association, which happens to be registered for the CTMCA’s former Crete Street offices, was allocated R190,000 in 2019/twenty, and an additional R635,000 in 2021/22 for just a “craft, woodwork and layout programme”. Nevertheless, it seems that the 2021/22 payment was withheld once the NLC raised questions about remarkable reports linked to previously funding gained from the CTMCA.
GroundUp has confirmed that the SIU is investigating the lottery funding acquired because of the CTMCA.
Also less than investigation is often a R1-million payment because of the CTMCA to MDU Consulting Engineers, which subsequently compensated R500,000 of the to attorneys acting in the acquisition of a 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 firm where the wife of previous NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba was a director, in direction of the purchase with the mansion. Zibsimanzi acquired R4.eight-million to stage a rural soccer Event in Limpopo soon after Letwaba personally advisable 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.