The Director of Public Prosecutions in Limpopo has declined to prosecute President Cyril Ramaphosa over the Phala Phala matter. In June 2022, former spy boss Arthur Fraser opened a case against Ramaphosa and his head of protection service, Major General Wally Roode, for allegedly covering up the theft at Phala Phala Farm in 2020. At the time, Fraser claimed that he provided the police with evidence showing that Ramaphosa concealed the crime from the SAPS and SARS and that the suspected thieves had been kidnapped and interrogated.

NO PROSPECT OF SUCCESSFUL PROSECUTION 

 In a statement yesterday, the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) in Limpopo Advocate Mukhali Thenga said that Fraser requested the SAPS to investigate the conduct of the President and Roode, alleging that it amounted to the commission of money laundering and corruption. "The investigations also covered any possible contravention of the Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 and Exchange Control Regulation 1962. This was subsequent to the break-in and theft of an undisclosed amount of US dollars at Phala Phala Farm in Bela Bela, Limpopo," Thenga said. She added that the decision not to prosecute was taken after careful assessment of all available evidence presented to the prosecutors by the Hawks. The statement further said that Thenga, concluded that there is no reasonable prospect of a successful prosecution based on evidence contained in the docket. "The DPP made her decision in line with the Prosecution Policy of the NPA, which states that a prosecutor, in deciding whether to institute criminal proceedings against an accused person, must assess whether there is sufficient and admissible evidence to provide a reasonable prospect of a successful prosecution."

SUSPECTED THIEVES IN COURT 

Three people who were arrested in connection with the theft of over $500 000 at Phala Phala farm house appeared before the Modimolle Regional Court on Monday and their case was postponed to November 26 for a pre-trial conference. The trio, Imanuwela David, Ramaphosa's former domestic worker Floriana Joseph and her brother Ndilinasho Joseph, are facing charges of conspiracy to commit housebreaking with intent to steal, housebreaking with intent to steal and theft. David, who has been in custody since his arrest last year, faces an additional charge of money laundering. He was denied bail in December last year, but his defence attorney told the court on Monday that he may re-apply for bail on new facts.