“Pot” Stemmet faces charges above theft of Lottery-funded devices
“Pot” Stemmet faces charges above theft of Lottery-funded devices
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Richard “Pot” Stemmet, still left, and an investigator appointed with the Countrywide Lotteries Fee to research the Lottery-funded minstrel museum: Photograph from an investigative report commissioned via the NLC
Richard “Pot” Stemmet is facing prosecution after machines paid for with cash within the Lottery was removed from a Cape Town making he rented.
Stemmet is to look in court in January.
According to a prosecutor the criminal expenses could involve fraud, removal of kit that were hooked up by the Sheriff and interfering with a Town of Cape City electric power meter.
The costs stem from a grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who, inside of a civil court make any difference, is seeking to Recuperate more than R2.five-million in unpaid rent, desire, legal costs and damage to a rented building in Crete Street, in the commercial region of Wetton in Cape Town.
The setting up was Formerly the headquarters of the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) and is also wherever a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating the city’s generations-old minstrel society was supposedly functioning.
Convicted felony Richard “Pot” Stemmet is facing prosecution for theft and fraud right after tools paid for with Lottery cash was removed from a Cape City making.
Stemmet was arrested because of the Specialised Industrial Criminal offense Unit on sixteen October 2024 and explained to to seem inside the Wynberg Justice of the peace’s Court on 21 November.
GroundUp attended court docket within the working day however the make any difference was not placed on the court roll since the investigating officer didn't supply the docket to prosecutors. Stemmet has now been summonsed to seem in court in January.
The criminal fees stem from the complaint laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who is searching for to Recuperate more than R2.five-million in unpaid hire, desire, authorized costs and damage to a rented constructing in Crete Road, in the industrial space of Wetton in Cape Town.
The setting up was Formerly the headquarters of the Cape City Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA). This is where a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating the town’s hundreds of years-aged minstrel tradition was supposedly operating.
The premises also housed many organizations owned by Stemmet, whom police have referred to as a medication substantial flier. Among the the companies Stemmet ran from your premises ended up a hat production corporation in addition to a nightclub. Stemmet has become arrested various moments for gun and drug-relevant offences and served time for armed robbery inside the 1980s.
In line with an SMS despatched to Meuwese with the investigating officer, Stemmet has now been summonsed to seem in courtroom on thirty January 2025.
Whilst Stemmet is still to generally be introduced which has a demand sheet, feasible charges, involve fraud, elimination of kit that had been hooked up with the Sheriff, and interfering by using a Town of Cape Town energy meter, Based on an electronic mail despatched to Meuwese by a senior prosecutor handling the subject.
A grant of almost R13-million to determine the minstrel museum was Section of over R64-million in Lottery money allotted towards the CTMCA amongst 2003 and 2017, with the bulk of the money - above R54.3-million - paid out while in the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 money several years, As outlined by Nationwide Lotteries Fee (NLC) yearly studies.
Stemmet was appointed a director in the CTMCA in September 1996 but resigned in December 2016. His wife Zainonesa and daughter Raziah continued สลาก กิน รัฐบาล as two of quite a few administrators with the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed to be a director in 2021.
Based on Meuwese, the developing was leased to Stalph 164, a detailed corporation of which Stemmet was certainly one of the administrators. The corporate was deregistered by the Companies and Mental Residence Commission (CIPC) in March 2023 for non-compliance in publishing annual reports.
A new entity with the same identify was subsequently registered as a private corporation, but with Stemmet not a director, Based on CIPC information. Instead, a member of the family, Ra’ees Stemmet, and Alfonzo van Niekerk were being appointed as administrators.
Around the evening of 12 April 2021 and into the subsequent early morning, the Crete Highway premises have been cleared and the machinery was taken out, As outlined by an affidavit by Meuwese. The machines was moved to new premises rented by Stemmet in Mymoena Crescent in the Athlone industrial region, which housed several of Stemmet’s enterprises and also a new “minstrel museum”, In accordance with a leaked investigative report commissioned with the NLC. The investigator also photographed the equipment at The brand new premises.
On the other hand, the meant new museum site, similar to the old just one in Wetton, was nicely from any of Cape Town’s tourist routes and website visitors could not entry it. There was no signage around the creating indicating that it housed a museum.
Stemmet’s firms vacated the premises earlier this calendar year just after he fell unwell.
The funding to ascertain a museum wasn't the one lottery grant that the CTMCA been given. In 2021, the association was allocated R100,000 and R1.five-million in Covid reduction grants. The NLC initially refused to reveal who had acquired Covid funding but finally relented beneath media and parliamentary tension.
Other lottery grants allocated to non-financial gain entities linked to Stemmet and his household and his associates include R1.4-million to the Cape Cultural Carnival and Functions Committee in 2019/twenty, and an extra R500,000 in 2021/22, Based on NLC annual reports. Stemmet is really a former director of the committee and his spouse, Zainonesa, is at this time a director.
And, the Peninsula and District Carnival Affiliation, that's registered on the CTMCA’s previous Crete Highway offices, was allotted R190,000 in 2019/20, and a further R635,000 in 2021/22 for just a “craft, woodwork and structure programme”. On the other hand, it appears that the 2021/22 payment was withheld once the NLC raised questions on excellent stories associated with previously funding been given through the CTMCA.
GroundUp has verified which the SIU is investigating the lottery funding obtained because of the CTMCA.
Also less than investigation is a R1-million payment through the CTMCA to MDU Consulting Engineers, which consequently paid out R500,000 of the to attorneys acting in the acquisition of the R27-million mansion for former NLC Board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
MDU also acted being a conduit for an additional R3-m payment by Zibsimanzi, a business during which the wife of previous NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba was a director, to the purchase in the mansion. Zibsimanzi obtained R4.eight-million to stage a rural soccer Event in Limpopo just after Letwaba personally encouraged that the grant be paid out to his spouse’s business.
GroundUp despatched questions to Stemmet by using SMS but he had not replied by the time of publication.