O’Sullivan said to have helped trace the Phala Phala suspects
PRIVATE investigator Paul O’Sullivan allegedly helped President Cyril Ramaphosa trace the suspects who stole US dollars from his Phala Phala farm in Waterberg, Limpopo, resulting in them being kidnapped and tortured.
Former spy boss Arthur Fraser’s supplementary affidavit handed to the Hawks in June about the farmgate case, stated that O’Sullivan was complicit in the theft, kidnapping and defeating the ends of justice case laid against Ramaphosa and former Presidential Protection Unit (PPU) head, General Wally Rhoode, regarding the February 2020 incident.
The suspects were allegedly hunted down and tortured with the help of O’Sullivan and others, until they surrendered the remaining loot.
Ironically, O’Sullivan has fashioned himself as a corruption buster after investigating former top cops Jacky Selebi and Khomotso Phahlane for alleged corruption.
O’Sullivan’s name features in a damning document submitted by UDM leader Bantu Holomisa to the Section 89 independent panel looking into the burglary to determine whether Ramaphosa had a case to answer since the crime was not reported.
Fraser’s supplementary affidavit also alleged that O’Sullivan collaborated with law enforcement personnel and Ramaphosa’s adviser, Bejani Chauke, to apprehend the suspects.
In the document, Chauke is accused of illegally smuggling millions of dollars into South Africa from five countries. The money is said to have been stashed at the Phala Phala farm before foreign nationals broke in and stole some of it.
“Mr O’Sullivan, a close associate of both the president and Mr Chauke, is said to have used his private investigation company to assist in the tracing of those alleged to have broken into the president’s residence,” reads the document.
It further implicates several police officers who helped trace the suspects, stating that a neighbour of Ramaphosa also played a role in viewing the security footage with the aim of tracing those identified in the videos. “Government grabber devices were also used to trace and ping persons alleged to have broken into the president’s residence.”
“The president, through Mr Chauke, had paid substantial amounts of money between February 2020 and July 2021 to trace persons alleged to have broken into his residence to recoup some of the stolen (dollars).”
Yesterday, O’Sullivan denied being complicit in the Phala Phala scandal, and branded Fraser the main culprit. “The very first I knew of the so-called Phala Phala incident was earlier this year when it surfaced in the media.
“For the avoidance of doubt, I was not involved in tracing or finding anybody, or bringing them into the custody of the president’s security detail, none of whom I have ever met in my life. I have never been contacted by the (Hawks) about this matter,” said O’Sullivan. The document submitted to the independent panel was 90% hearsay, he added.