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Thoshan Panday, Durban businessman.
- Controversial Durban businessman Thoshan Panday has been charged with fraud and corruption in connection with a tender for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
- Panday went to court to overturn a decision by former NDPP Shaun Abrahams to prosecute him and his co-defendants.
- Panday’s application was dismissed by the Pietermaritzburg High Court.
Controversial Durban businessman Thoshan Panday, who has been accused of fraud and corruption in connection with a tender for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, may face music after losing his court battle to prevent the case against him from being indicted.
The Pietermaritzburg High Court on Wednesday rejected Panday’s request to review and overturn a decision by former National Director of Public Prosecution (NDPP) Shaun Abrahams to prosecute him and the co-defendants Colonel Navin Madhoe and Captain Ashwin Narainpershad, both employees of the South African Police Services (SAPS).
It is alleged that Panday and his co-defendants defrauded SAPS in connection with the temporary provision of accommodation for police officers during the FIFA World Cup.
The tender was reportedly worth R60 million.
Abrahams, in 2016, reversed a decision by the director of the KwaZulu-Natal Public Ministry, Moipone Noko, not to prosecute the Durban businessman and his co-defendants in the fraud and corruption case.
READ | Policemen who cooperated with businessman Thoshan Panday received ‘benefits’, Zondo commission hears
Noko further declined to prosecute two other cases against Panday stemming from the original case.
This included a meddling case against former KZN police commissioner Mmamonnye Ngobeni, who allegedly instructed the head of the Kwazulu-Natal Hawks, Major General Johan Booysen, to drop the investigation against Panday.
Give up
Subsequently, Ngobeni was suspended and resigned from SAPS in 2018.
The second case was also for alleged interference in the FIFA World Cup investigation whereby Madhoe, on behalf of Panday, was accused of attempting to bribe Booysen to drop the case.
A sting operation was launched on 8 September 2011 and Madhoe was reportedly caught delivering a 1.43 million rand bribe to Booysen.
Noko provisionally withdrew this matter and then made the final decision not to prosecute.
READ | ‘There was a very good case’ – former prosecutor on alleged attempts to bribe General Hawks
The court criticized Noko for irrationality in its decision-making process on these matters, as she had stated that “there was no evidence to prosecute any person for any crime.”
Judge Trevor Gorven said:
This simply ignores a 400-page report from forensic accountants and a “trove” of documents that allegedly provide evidence of Mr. Panday’s involvement in the crimes. To say that Mr. Panday and Colonel Madhoe were nowhere in the [case number] 781 ‘, belief of the beggars.
A third case was also recorded, in which Panday was accused of fraudulently attempting to unfreeze the funds that he claimed were being paid by SAPS in connection with the tender.
In his view, Gorven said that Panday’s request sought to primarily attack two aspects in Abrahams’ decision to prosecute him, namely a lack of rationality and that the former NDPP did not consult Noko before reviewing his decision.
Panday also tried to argue that Abrahams’ decision to prosecute him was tainted because he did not listen to the conversations that were intercepted from his phone by the Hawks.
The interceptions were authorized by a judge after an investigator in the case was allegedly threatened.
READ | The State has no case against me – Panday
Gorven found that there was a proper consultation with Noko and in the rationality test, Panday had not shown that Abrahams did not use the appropriate means to review Noko’s decision.
On the subject of wiretaps, Gorven found that the conversations were not part of the investigation of the bidding case, but rather the interference of the case and therefore were not applicable for consideration by Abrahams.
Based on the findings, Gorven dismissed the request, likely paving the way for prosecution in the FIFA World Cup bidding case.
Since then, the matter had also been aired in the Zondo commission, with witnesses coming forward to speak about Panday and its relationship with the SAPS officials involved.
READ | Policemen who cooperated with businessman Thoshan Panday received ‘benefits’, Zondo commission hears
