‘Meddling could collapse VBS case’
Sources say investigators put under pressure to implicate some politicians
THE case against the alleged looters of the Venda Building Society (VBS) Mutual Bank could collapse due to alleged political meddling and the attempt to use it to settle scores.
This is according to sources close to the investigations, who this week warned against the politicisation of the trial and the timing of the arrests – two years after the investigation was concluded.
The sources raised the concerns following the arrest of eight suspects – including former VBS chairperson Tshifhiwa Matodzi – on accusations of looting R2 billion from the bank between 2015 and 2018.
The warning came days after National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) Shamila Batohi described the VBS scandal as “probably the biggest bank robbery in this country”.
The sources claimed that the investigators were put under pressure – in the period between the conclusion of the probe into the collapse of the bank and the arrest of the suspects – to find the smoking gun needed to nail unnamed big fish “by hook or by crook”.
While the investigation into VBS was concluded in 2018, they added, the arrests were delayed as “some people were hoping that something would fall from the sky to directly implicate the big fish in the matter”.
“This case is purely a criminal matter, but it would be turned into a political circus by those who have hidden agendas and scores to settle with their rivals.
“And if we allow political meddling to happen in this case, we will see it collapsing regardless of the crucial evidence collected against the suspects,” said an official familiar with the investigation.
He claimed one of the big fish in the case is a senior politician “who has pissed off the wrong people and would be made to pay the price”.
“We are investigating criminals, and we are not going to use this investigation to settle political scores. The same people arrested in a raid this week could have been arrested two years ago, but everything was delayed as investigators were told to look for a smoking gun against the big fish,” added another source.
“It is evident that some of the money looted from VBS found its way into some of the politicians’ pockets and bankrolled their lifestyles, but whether or not these politicians are criminals themselves, is a bone of contention.”
Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi denied claims of political meddling in the VBS case.
“If there is anyone with any information which indicates that there was any political meddling in this investigation, they must bring it to the fore and report it to the relevant authorities like the public protector and others. We stand by our officers that they are investigating a criminal case and not conducting a political witch-hunt,” Mulaudzi said.
He confirmed that more arrests were expected but refused to say whether politicians were among the suspects.
“We don’t have the number of suspects yet, but there’s a lot of people we are looking at.”
While the sources refused to give names, it is understood that the big fish include EFF president Julius Malema and his deputy, Floyd Shivambu.
The two politicians have been accused of involvement in the VBS scandal even though their names were not mentioned in the report.
Malema could not be reached for comment yesterday. Shivambu declined to comment.
However, in a statement released this week, EFF welcomed the arrests of the eight men and reiterated its stance that its leaders were innocent.
“We further welcome the commitment by the DPCI that no stone will be left unturned in conducting these investigations and that everyone involved will be held accountable.”