COPS RAID ‘NGILOSI’S HOME, SEIZE MORE PROPERTY

 MDUMEZULU – The State, in terms of POCA, has again returned to seize movable properties belonging to alleged dagga dealer Menzi ‘Ngilosi’ Fakudze.

POCA is the Prevention of Organised Crime Act of 2018.

Drama ensued at the well-known businessman’s home at Mdumezulu, when law enforcers, armed with a court order authorising them to seize moveable properties, seized three water tanks, two water pumps and a generator, allegedly belonging to Fakudze.

This court order follows an application for forfeiture, in terms of Section 50 (1) of the POCA, where over E1 million worth of Fakudze’s property was to be seized on suspicion that it was proceeds of crime. Fakudze is suspected to be a dagga dealer.

 Criminal  

The court order also follows after the State motivated the application stating that these items were allegedly purchased with proceeds of criminal activities. 

Armed with the court order, six plain-clothes officers from the Siteki Police Station arrived at Fakudze’s  homestead at about 9am yesterday and found no one present. 

However, according to Ngilosi’s relative, Nonhlanhla Dlamini, who was watching the event unfolding from her nearby homestead, upon seeing that the gate was locked with a padlock, one officer jumped over it into the premises.

Dlamini narrated that the officer, identified as Mlambo, allegedly used a hammer to break the padlock and two vehicles, an Operational Support Service Unit (OSSU) truck and a white police sedan drove into the homestead. 

According to Dlamini, the officers immediately headed towards four water tanks placed on a concrete structure and started emptying them.

She relayed that the six officers canvassed the premises and found two water pumps and a generator, which they loaded onto the OSSU truck, along with three water tanks. Although having emptied all four water tanks, she said the officers were only able to load three of them.

“When I questioned them about what they were doing, they showed me the court order stating that they were here to seize moveable properties belonging to Ngilosi. However, I informed them that some of the water tanks belonged to me, which I use to water my vegetable garden,” she said.

Dlamini alleged that more family members arrived at the homestead after seeing the commotion, especially since Fakudze was not present to witness the removal of his items. 

Not deterred from their mission, the armed officers allegedly threatened to assault some of Fakudze’s relatives who had become increasingly emotional as the officers emptied the water tanks onto the premises.

Relatives

During a visit to the homestead yesterday, some relatives of Fakudze blasted the State for conducting their operation knowing full well that he was not present.

Dlamini stated that the officers did not pay any attention to her pleas to leave one water tank containing water for her to use, instead they left one of them empty.

“I informed them that this home belongs to my husband Solomon Fakudze (Ngilosi’s father) who has lived with a disability for years. Farming is the only means for us to survive as we have numerous children we cannot support on his disability grant alone,” she said.

The officers, in response to Dlamini’s pleas, allegedly informed her that they had been authorised by the court order issued by a judge to seize the remaining moveable properties, and their actions were legal and in line with the POCA. 

An inconsolable Dlamini expressed her devastation at being left with no water for her garden, or even to survive. She told this publication that she no longer had hope after the events that unfolded yesterday.

Upon inspection of the premises, there was a visible muddy mess where the officers allegedly emptied the water tanks. 

Dlamini pointed to where the two water pumps and generator were situated before being seized by the State.

According to an application of forfeiture submitted by the State on June 18, 2020, the items seized by the State included a BMW registered PSD 837 CH, Isuzu registered NSD 381 AS, Ford tractor registered BSM 017 MP, Mercedes Benz truck registered VSD 363 AM, rolls of drip irrigation pipes, four water tanks, a geyser, two water pumps, generator, compressor, drill machine, chainsaw, tractor plough and one converter.

Compressor 

The remaining items that have not been seized by the State thus far are one water tank, a geyser, compressor, drill machine, chainsaw, tractor plough and converter.

In motivating the application in July 2020, prosecutor Thulani Mamba submitted that relevant facts showed that the properties purported to belong to Fakudze were allegedly proceeds of criminal activities. 

He highlighted that the purpose of the order was to ensure that the property was preserved pending the outcome of an application for forfeiture in terms of Section 50 (1) of the POCA. 

According to Mamba, the belief that Fakudze was an alleged dagga dealer was based on the fact that dagga was allegedly recovered at his homestead at Mdumezulu. 

Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent Phindile Vilakati confirmed that officers visited the homestead to action a court order in terms of POCA.

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