South Africa has launched an investigation into a number of individuals concerned in a gold smuggling and cash laundering scheme uncovered by Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit.
In a speech to the Parliament of South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa stated this week the investigation was within the “inquiry stage”.
“We’re dedicated to preserving the integrity of our monetary system within the pursuits of the broader economic system and bizarre residents,” Ramaphosa added on Thursday. “Particulars of the steps which are being taken can’t be divulged at this stage with out compromising the investigation.”
The investigation is the direct results of Gold Mafia, a four-part collection by Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit (I-Unit) into gold smuggling and cash laundering in southern Africa.
In it, Al Jazeera revealed how a bunch of cash launderers and gold smugglers had successfully taken over a number of South African banks by bribing key members, permitting the criminals to ship massive quantities of illegally obtained cash abroad with out elevating the suspicions of the authorities.
Mo {Dollars}
The important thing particular person on this course of was a person named Mohamed Khan, nicknamed Mo {Dollars}.
“He’s type of held up as a type of shadowy determine that controls cash laundering in South Africa,” cash laundering investigator Paul Holden advised Al Jazeera.
Amongst Khan’s greatest shoppers was Simon Rudland, a Zimbabwean millionaire who owns one of many area’s greatest tobacco corporations, Gold Leaf Tobacco. South African income officers have accused Rudland of evading taxes by promoting his cigarettes on the black market.
Rudland authorised Khan’s firm SALT Asset Administration to hold out international alternate transactions on Gold Leaf’s behalf. Khan, who additionally owned one other firm referred to as PKSA Group, then used a posh net of faux invoices, entrance corporations and financial institution accounts to launder tons of of tens of millions of {dollars} to financial institution accounts everywhere in the world, from Dubai to Mauritius to Switzerland.
These corporations are managed by Rudland and several other enterprise companions.
To make sure that this course of didn’t elevate any pink flags in South Africa’s monetary system, Khan would bribe key officers at two of the nation’s greatest banks – Commonplace and Absa – in addition to at Sasfin, a financial institution that focuses on small companies.
Ledgers accessed by Al Jazeera present hundreds of {dollars} of money have been paid each month to those officers. Different paperwork and interviews reveal that dodgy, illicit transactions have been solely processed when bribed staff have been within the workplace.
Folks in financial institution compliance departments have been paid to make sure that PKSA and SALT Asset Administration paperwork appeared clear and obtained the required approvals. And within the case of Sasfin, a member of the IT division obtained bribes to wipe fraudulent transactions from the financial institution’s on-line system.
Request for UK investigation
Final week, a member of the Home of Lords in the UK requested for the same investigation into members of the Gold Mafia by UK authorities.
Three of the individuals featured within the investigation – Uebert Angel, Rikki Doolan, and Kamlesh Pattni – have British citizenship.
“I hope that the Nationwide Crime Company is investigating the actions of those people and others named within the documentary and the sources of their wealth, and that the authorities received’t hesitate to freeze their funds whereas these investigations are being pursued,” Baron Jonny Oates of Denby Grange stated through the dialogue of the Financial Crime and Company Transparency Invoice.
Uebert Angel is a pastor and self-proclaimed prophet who was appointed Zimbabwe’s ambassador-at-large for Europe and the Americas by President Emmerson Mnangagwa. Doolan is Angel’s quantity two. Angel was covertly recorded agreeing to smuggle $1.2bn of soiled money into Zimbabwe utilizing his diplomatic standing. He advised Al Jazeera’s undercover reporters, “[The plane] will land in Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe can’t contact it too till I get to my home. So, there could be a diplomatic plan.”
Kamlesh Pattni is a gold smuggler who within the Nineties virtually bankrupted Kenya by way of a gold smuggling scheme. He has since moved his gold smuggling and cash laundering operation to Zimbabwe. He additionally provided to assist Al Jazeera’s undercover reporters to launder cash and smuggle gold, a deal that he stated can be protected by Mnangagwa.
YouTube account taken offline
In response to the investigation, Angel stated he was really undercover himself when he provided to interrupt the regulation. Angel, who claims he can predict the long run, stated he was all the time conscious the undercover journalists have been reporters, and he had concocted an elaborate scheme to disclose the true nature of the conferences regardless of by no means offering any proof of him working undercover himself.
Because the launch of the investigation, Angel’s YouTube channel has been taken offline, though it’s unclear whether or not the account was eliminated by YouTube or if Angel took the account offline himself.
A second account, additionally belonging to Angel, stays on-line.
Reponses to investigation
Simon Rudland advised Al Jazeera that the allegations towards him shaped a part of a smear marketing campaign by an unidentified third social gathering. He denied any involvement within the sale of illicit cigarettes and in gold or different smuggling.
He accepted that he had had dealings with Mohamed Khan, who he agreed “appeared” to be a cash launderer. He acknowledged that Gold Leaf and one other of his corporations had authorised Khan’s SALT Asset Administration to behave as their agent however denied that any type of cash laundering had been undertaken for him or any of his companies.
Gold Leaf Tobacco denied any involvement, previous or current, in cash laundering, unlawful gold commerce and associated issues. No “untaxed” or “unlawful” cigarettes could possibly be “attributed” to Gold Leaf, it stated. Gold Leaf’s restricted transactions with Mohamed Khan and SALT Asset Administration had all the time been lawful and correct, it stated.
Mohamed Khan advised Al Jazeera that each one allegations towards him have been false and primarily based on hypothesis, conjecture and manufactured and doctored proof. He confirmed that he was the proprietor of the PKSA Group and of SALT Asset Administration and that Gold Leaf have been shoppers of SALT, however he denied involvement in cash laundering or different prison exercise. He denied bribing anybody who labored within the South African banking sector.
Sasfin Financial institution advised Al Jazeera it was taking vigorous motion towards suspended and former staff and shoppers of its international alternate unit and stated that it not had a relationship with any of the companies named on this article.
Absa Financial institution stated it had handed Al Jazeera’s findings to its Forensic Investigative Unit, whereas Commonplace Financial institution stated it has a zero-tolerance stance referring to fraud and criminality and would report and help in any authorized investigation.
Kamlesh Pattni denied involvement in any type of cash laundering or bribery and denied being in communication with Mnangagwa or having any enterprise dealings with him.
Others featured on this report didn’t reply to our inquiries.
