"Phala Phala theft: two convicted, one acquitted"

The Modimolle Regional Court on Monday convicted two people over the theft of $580,000 from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm in Limpopo in February 2020, and acquitted a third (eNCA).

Regional magistrate Peter Manthata found Imanuwela David guilty of conspiracy to commit housebreaking with intent to steal, housebreaking with intent to steal and theft, and money laundering. Froliana Joseph, who worked at the farm at the time of the theft, was convicted of conspiracy to commit housebreaking with intent to steal. Her brother, Ndilinasho Joseph, was acquitted on all charges (IOL).

All three were found not guilty of charges over a break-in at Stokkiesdraai, a neighbouring farm in Limpopo, not the Stokkiesdraai area on the Vaal (IOL; eNCA).

What the court said

The court found that the state had presented enough circumstantial evidence, despite shortcomings in the investigation and no direct evidence identifying who broke in (eNCA). Manthata said there were no fingerprints or usable video footage. “This is a clear indication that the investigations of this case were poorly done,” he said (IOL).

He accepted evidence that David paid US dollars for a Volkswagen Golf 7 at a Benoni dealership the morning after the break-in, and found that David bought other cars with US dollars (IOL). He found that Froliana Joseph had access to the house through her work and communicated with David by cellphone before and after the break-in. He said there was no evidence that Ndilinasho Joseph, who never worked at Phala Phala, knew what was happening there (IOL).

The National Prosecuting Authority in Limpopo welcomed the convictions, IOL reported.