Richard “Pot” Stemmet, remaining, and an investigator appointed via the Nationwide Lotteries Fee to investigate the Lottery-funded minstrel museum: Picture from an investigative report commissioned through the NLC

Richard “Pot” Stemmet is struggling with prosecution soon after machines compensated for with cash within the Lottery was faraway from a Cape City making he rented.
Stemmet is to look in courtroom in January.
According to a prosecutor the prison costs could incorporate fraud, removal of kit that had been attached via the Sheriff and interfering by using a City of Cape Town electricity meter.
The costs stem from a grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who, in a civil court docket make a difference, is looking for to Get well about R2.five-million in unpaid hire, interest, legal expenses and damage to a rented constructing in Crete Street, in the economic place of Wetton in Cape City.
The constructing was Formerly the headquarters in the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) and is particularly where by a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating the town’s centuries-aged minstrel lifestyle was supposedly working.
Convicted criminal Richard “Pot” Stemmet is struggling with prosecution for theft and fraud immediately after tools compensated for with Lottery money was faraway from a Cape City creating.

Stemmet was arrested via the Specialised Industrial Crime Unit on sixteen Oct 2024 and informed to seem during the Wynberg Justice of the peace’s Court on 21 November.

GroundUp attended court within the day although the issue was not placed on the court roll because the investigating officer did not deliver the docket to prosecutors. Stemmet has now been summonsed to appear in court docket in January.

The prison charges stem from the grievance laid by Stemmet’s landlord, Sean Meuwese, who is in search of to Recuperate over R2.five-million in unpaid lease, curiosity, legal prices and damage to a rented creating in Crete Street, in the industrial space of Wetton in Cape City.

The developing was Beforehand the headquarters on the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA). This is when a non-existent, Lottery-funded museum celebrating the city’s generations-outdated minstrel society was supposedly working.

The premises also housed several enterprises owned by Stemmet, whom police have referred to as a drugs substantial flier. Among the the businesses Stemmet ran through the premises were being a hat producing business plus a nightclub. Stemmet continues to be arrested many periods for gun and drug-linked offences and served time for armed robbery while in the 1980s.

In accordance with an SMS sent to Meuwese from the investigating officer, Stemmet has now been summonsed to seem in court on thirty January 2025.

Whilst Stemmet is nonetheless being presented that has a charge sheet, probable expenses, involve fraud, removing of apparatus that were attached via the Sheriff, and interfering by using a City of Cape Town electrical energy meter, In line with an email sent to Meuwese by a senior prosecutor managing the make a difference.

A grant of virtually R13-million to ascertain the minstrel museum was Element of greater than R64-million in Lottery money allocated to your CTMCA concerning 2003 and 2017, with the majority of the money - about R54.3-million - paid out from the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 financial years, In line with Nationwide Lotteries Fee (NLC) yearly reports.

Stemmet was appointed a director of your CTMCA in September 1996 but resigned in December 2016. His spouse Zainonesa and daughter Raziah continued ตรวจ หวย รัฐบาล as two of several administrators of your organisation. Stemmet was reappointed for a director in 2021.

As outlined by Meuwese, the constructing was leased to Stalph 164, a close Company of which Stemmet was among the administrators. The organization was deregistered by the businesses and Mental House Fee (CIPC) in March 2023 for non-compliance in submitting annual stories.

A brand new entity Together with the exact same name was subsequently registered as a private organization, but with Stemmet not a director, In line with CIPC data. As a substitute, a family member, Ra’ees Stemmet, and Alfonzo van Niekerk were appointed as administrators.

Over the night of 12 April 2021 and into the subsequent morning, the Crete Highway premises were cleared and also the equipment was taken off, In accordance with an affidavit by Meuwese. The equipment was moved to new premises rented by Stemmet in Mymoena Crescent from the Athlone industrial location, which housed quite a few of Stemmet’s firms along with a new “minstrel museum”, As outlined by a leaked investigative report commissioned with the NLC. The investigator also photographed the equipment at the new premises.

On the other hand, the meant new museum web page, just like the old a single in Wetton, was very well faraway from any of Cape Town’s vacationer routes and visitors could not obtain it. There was no signage on the developing indicating that it housed a museum.

Stemmet’s businesses vacated the premises previously this year just after he fell sick.

The funding to establish a museum was not the only real lottery grant the CTMCA obtained. In 2021, the Affiliation was allotted R100,000 and R1.5-million in Covid reduction grants. The NLC at first refused to expose who experienced received Covid funding but finally relented beneath media and parliamentary pressure.

Other lottery grants allocated to non-gain entities linked to Stemmet and his loved ones and his associates involve R1.four-million with the Cape Cultural Carnival and Occasions Committee in 2019/20, and a further R500,000 in 2021/22, In accordance with NLC annual reviews. Stemmet is really a previous director of your committee and his spouse, Zainonesa, is at the moment a director.

And, the Peninsula and District Carnival Association, that is registered at the CTMCA’s previous Crete Road workplaces, was allocated R190,000 in 2019/20, and an extra R635,000 in 2021/22 for the “craft, woodwork and design and style programme”. However, it appears that the 2021/22 payment was withheld once the NLC lifted questions about superb reviews connected to earlier funding obtained because of the CTMCA.

GroundUp has verified which the SIU is investigating the lottery funding received from the CTMCA.

Also beneath investigation can be a R1-million payment because of the CTMCA to MDU Consulting Engineers, which subsequently compensated R500,000 of the to attorneys acting in the purchase of a R27-million mansion for former NLC Board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.

MDU also acted like a conduit for a further R3-m payment by Zibsimanzi, a company in which the spouse of former NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba was a director, in the direction of the purchase of the mansion. Zibsimanzi gained R4.8-million to phase a rural soccer tournament in Limpopo just after Letwaba personally recommended the grant be compensated to his wife’s company.

GroundUp sent thoughts to Stemmet through SMS but he experienced not replied by the point of publication.