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A former driver and bodyguard of former Free State Prime Minister Ace Magashule was convicted Thursday of stealing a painting of R8m Pierneef that he once hung in Magashule’s office.
The Bloemfontein Superior Court found Ricardo Mettler, 43, guilty of theft, money laundering and fraud on Thursday.
This follows a lawsuit regarding the disappearance of JH Pierneef’s valuable painting from the OR Tambo building of the provincial government in the Free State during 2018.
“The Hawks’ business crime investigation resulted in Mettler, the former driver and bodyguard of former Free State Prime Minister Ace Magashule, being summoned to appear in Bloemfontein Magistrates Court on March 4, 2020 and consequently , the matter was transferred to the higher court, “Free said State Hawks spokesman Colonel Katlego Mogale.
“The unwavering investigation determined that Mettler stole and turned over Pierneef’s painting to an entrepreneur, who then went on to have Strauss and Co evaluate the piece, from where the alarm was raised upon being identified as a provincial government asset valued at approximately R8m “.
The court found Mettler guilty on four counts, but he was found not guilty on one count of violation of the National Heritage Act.
The matter was postponed until December 15 for a report from a social worker.
TimesLIVE
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