Ladysmith SUV scam probe

Vehicles found on municipal premises

ALFRED Duma (Ladysmith) Local Municipality is investigating how brand-new SUVs ended up on its property without the knowledge of the authorities.

The 12 Fiat 4x4s and 4x2s – valued at R4.7 million – were seized by the town’s Vehicle Crime Investigation Unit.

It was al erted to the vehicles by a municipal official, according to a police source.

The police, however, would not say if the official was from the local municipality.

Ladysmith police spokesperson Captain Charmaine Struwig said those involved placed the order in Gauteng using a provincial government department’s letterhead.

“We believe this is a scam and whoever is involved knew that the department that was used to place the order had some business with the municipality.

“The vehicles were ordered from a vehicle manufacturing company in March.

“Company officials received an order from what they thought was a government department.

“The vehicles were manufactured, and as per the delivery address given in the order, it was delivered to a municipal premises in Ladysmith,” Struwig said.

She said that when the municipal official was called to take delivery of the vehicles, he realised something was suspicious.

“The official was vigilant and informed the police. We contacted the provincial government department concerned and they had no knowledge of this delivery.

“We then communicated with the manufacturer who said they would open a case.

“On our side, we opened an inquiry,” she said.

Border

Captain Nqobile Gwala, provincial police spokesperson, said it was suspected that these vehicles were part of a scam to defraud the company and that the suspects intended to move the vehicles across the border.

Fiat Chrysler would not comment on the matter. Spokesperson Ferro Domingo said they were investigating.

“Until we have more information on this we can’t say anything.

“The vehicles are still at the Ladysmith police pound and the police are still investigating,” Domingo said.

Siya Maphalala, municipal spokesman, said: “This has just been discovered, and ours is to discover how and when these vehicles ended up in municipal property. By Monday, we will have a full report.” AMID a day of yacht racing in Durban tomorrow, a host of young sailing enthusiasts from KwaMashu through to Glenwood will get a glimpse into the lives of more than 36 coelacanths living in deep underwater canyons off Sodwana Bay.

Once thought to have gone extinct more than 65 million years ago, video footage of live coelacanths made science history worldwide in October 2000 after the late deep-sea diver Peter Timm discovered several in a dark, canyon cave off Sodwana Bay, 104m below the surface.

A photograph of Timm has pride of place on board the research vessel, the Angra Pequena, which leading marine scientists have since used to monitor the coelacanths, all of which have since been individually identified based on unique markings or habits.

Sail Africa provides education and skills training to young South Africans, many of whom could otherwise not afford to participate in sailing.

“We are linking up with SeaQuests and Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife in introducing young sailing enthusiasts to the world of marine science,” said Jackie Barnard, director of Sail Africa

The visits to the Angra Pequena are being co-ordinated by a team of Ocean Stewards who are expected to accompany a group of leading marine scientists on a 30-day deepsea research expedition.

“We are wanting to give the learners a sense of what life out at sea is like, and the work that we are doing to protect our rich, biodiverse and fragile marine eco-systems,” said Angra Pequena skipper and head of Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife scientific services division, Dr Jean Harris.

Sail Africa is an NPO that makes sailing accessible to youths of all backgrounds, also grooming them for careers in the marine field.

In interacting with WhaleTime guides, the young sailing enthusiasts will learn about Durban’s history of whaling and other threats that whales still face in the oceans today.

“I will also be telling the kids about the Lady in White,” said WhaleTime guide Nomfundo Mfeka, referring to Perla Siedle Gibson, a soprano artist who became internationally celebrated during World War II for singing troopships in and out of Durban Harbour.

“From April 1940 to August 1945, whether in the early dawn, wind, rain or the blazing sun, she never missed one convoy, not even the one that sailed out on the day she learned that her eldest son had been killed in action,” reads the plaque at the foot of the Lady in White statue at the Port Natal Maritime Museum.