Coup plotter ‘a desperate man out to make quick money’

THE possibility that alleged coup plotter Elvis Ramosebudi was engaged in an advance fee scam, in which he promised heaven and earth to the people he approached for money, should not be excluded.

This was said yesterday by Johannesburg Regional Court magistrate Vincent Ratshibvumo when he granted Ramosebudi bail of R3 000.

Ramosebudi‚ of Soshanguve, Pretoria‚ is alleged to have sent a letter in October to a certain entity requesting R60-million to finance an undercover operation to assassinate beneficiaries of the “state capture regime”.

The beneficiaries listed included President Jacob Zuma‚ four members of the Gupta family and some cabinet ministers.

In March, he allegedly sent a letter to Ajay Gupta requesting R75-million to finance a plot to assassinate people who supported “white monopoly capitalists”.

Ramosebudi was initially charged with conspiracy to murder.

This has since been changed to the lesser offence of incitement to commit murder.

Ramosebudi applied for bail on Friday‚ which the state opposed.

It said if released on bail‚ Ramosebudi would endanger the safety of certain people and commit murder.

The magistrate said: “The picture portrayed to this court is rather of an unemployed, penniless young man who seems desperate to make quick money, no matter how dirty.”

Ratshibvumo said the state indicated that it was thought this could be a 419 scam, where a victim was approached by someone and promised heaven and earth.

“Can it be that the applicant was in a scam in which he promised heaven and earth to the complainants in this case?”

He said if that was the case‚ Ramosebudi must have concluded that “heaven and earth” for the Gupta family and the unnamed companies could not be riches but the killing of people he listed as he lured them into paying some cash.

“Just as it is the case in 419 scams‚ the victims could kiss goodbye to their money,” Ratshibvumo said.

“This possibility remains possible and cannot be totally excluded‚ at least as an alternative.”

The magistrate also said nothing presented in the bail application suggested that Ramosebudi was capable of carrying through on any of the promises he had made.

He said that first‚ Ramosebudi presented himself as willing to assassinate the state capture beneficiaries for the sake of the country.

But, when no cash was forthcoming, he jumped to the other side, presenting himself as a protector of the very family he initially wanted to wipe out.