“Pot” Stemmet faces expenses in excess of theft of Lottery-funded equipment

“Pot” Stemmet faces expenses in excess of theft of Lottery-funded equipment

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Richard “Pot” Stemmet, still left, and an investigator appointed by the Countrywide Lotteries Fee to investigate the Lottery-funded minstrel museum: Photo from an investigative report commissioned through the NLC

Richard “Pot” Stemmet is experiencing prosecution right after tools paid for with funds from the Lottery was faraway from a Cape Town developing he rented.
Stemmet is to look in courtroom in January.
As outlined by a prosecutor the felony expenses could consist of fraud, removing of equipment that were hooked up with the Sheriff and interfering having a Town of Cape Town electrical energy meter.
The fees stem from a criticism laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who, within a civil courtroom make a difference, is searching for to recover in excess of R2.five-million in unpaid rent, curiosity, authorized expenditures and harm to a rented building in Crete Road, in the industrial location of Wetton in Cape Town.
The creating was Earlier the headquarters with the Cape City Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA) and is also wherever a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating town’s centuries-old minstrel culture was supposedly operating.
Convicted prison Richard “Pot” Stemmet is facing prosecution for theft and fraud soon after products paid for with Lottery money was faraway from a Cape City making.

Stemmet was arrested with the Specialised Commercial Criminal offense Unit on 16 Oct 2024 and advised to look during the Wynberg Justice of the peace’s Court docket on 21 November.

GroundUp attended court around the day nevertheless the make a difference was not put on the courtroom roll since the investigating officer did not supply the docket to prosecutors. Stemmet has now been summonsed to seem in courtroom in January.

The felony costs stem from a grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, that's in search of to Get better over R2.5-million in unpaid lease, fascination, authorized costs and damage to a rented developing in Crete Road, in the commercial spot of Wetton in Cape Town.

The constructing was Formerly the headquarters from the Cape City Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA). This is when a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating the city’s generations-previous minstrel tradition was supposedly running.

The premises also housed numerous businesses owned by Stemmet, whom law enforcement have called a medicine high flier. Between the companies Stemmet ran with the premises were a hat producing company in addition to a nightclub. Stemmet is arrested several occasions for gun and drug-associated offences and served time for armed robbery while in the eighties.

According to an SMS sent to Meuwese through the investigating officer, Stemmet has now been summonsed to seem in court docket on thirty January 2025.

While Stemmet is still to get presented with a cost sheet, possible rates, contain fraud, removal of kit that had been connected with the Sheriff, and interfering having a Metropolis of Cape Town electrical power meter, As outlined by an email sent to Meuwese by a senior prosecutor managing the subject.

A grant of just about R13-million to determine the minstrel museum was A part of a lot more than R64-million in Lottery cash allotted into the CTMCA between 2003 and 2017, with the majority of The cash - about R54.three-million - paid within the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 monetary years, In accordance with National Lotteries Fee (NLC) yearly experiences.

Stemmet was appointed a director from the CTMCA in September 1996 but resigned in December 2016. His spouse Zainonesa and daughter Raziah ongoing หวย ลาว ออก วัน นี้ สด as two of many directors of the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed for a director in 2021.

As outlined by Meuwese, the constructing was leased to Stalph 164, a detailed corporation of which Stemmet was one of the directors. The organization was deregistered by the businesses and Mental Home Commission (CIPC) in March 2023 for non-compliance in distributing once-a-year reports.

A fresh entity with the identical name was subsequently registered as a private organization, but with Stemmet no longer a director, In accordance with CIPC information. As an alternative, a member of the family, Ra’ees Stemmet, and Alfonzo van Niekerk had been appointed as directors.

Over the night of 12 April 2021 and into the subsequent morning, the Crete Highway premises ended up cleared along with the machinery was eradicated, In line with an affidavit by Meuwese. The gear was moved to new premises rented by Stemmet in Mymoena Crescent within the Athlone industrial area, which housed various of Stemmet’s organizations and also a new “minstrel museum”, In accordance with a leaked investigative report commissioned by the NLC. The investigator also photographed the tools at The brand new premises.

However, the meant new museum web site, much like the outdated a person in Wetton, was well away from any of Cape City’s vacationer routes and website visitors could not entry it. There was no signage to the making indicating that it housed a museum.

Stemmet’s corporations vacated the premises earlier this calendar year soon after he fell ill.

The funding to determine a museum was not the one lottery grant which the CTMCA acquired. In 2021, the association was allocated R100,000 and R1.five-million in Covid aid grants. The NLC originally refused to expose who experienced obtained Covid funding but finally relented below media and parliamentary force.

Other lottery grants allotted to non-profit entities linked to Stemmet and his household and his associates include R1.four-million for the Cape Cultural Carnival and Occasions Committee in 2019/20, and a further R500,000 in 2021/22, In line with NLC yearly studies. Stemmet can be a former director in the committee and his wife, Zainonesa, is now a director.

And, the Peninsula and District Carnival Affiliation, that's registered on the CTMCA’s previous Crete Road places of work, was allocated R190,000 in 2019/twenty, and a further R635,000 in 2021/22 for a “craft, woodwork and style and design programme”. Nonetheless, it seems that the 2021/22 payment was withheld following the NLC lifted questions about remarkable experiences connected with before funding received through the CTMCA.

GroundUp has verified the SIU is investigating the lottery funding acquired because of the CTMCA.

Also less than investigation is a R1-million payment from the CTMCA to MDU Consulting Engineers, which in turn paid R500,000 of this to lawyers performing in the acquisition of the R27-million mansion for former NLC Board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.

MDU also acted as being a conduit for an extra R3-m payment by Zibsimanzi, a corporation in which the spouse of former NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba was a director, towards the acquisition in the mansion. Zibsimanzi obtained R4.eight-million to phase a rural soccer tournament in Limpopo after Letwaba personally recommended the grant be paid to his wife’s enterprise.

GroundUp sent inquiries to Stemmet by using SMS but he had not replied by the time of publication.