New Gupta ‘scam’ snares estate agent
Top estate agency taken in by man offering mandate
● One of SA’s biggest property companies has been caught up in an embarrassing “scam” involving an attempt to sell a palatial Saxonwold home owned by the Guptas.
The sale of the “gentleman’s residence”, which was listed for R16.5m, was hastily withdrawn after the Sunday Times exposed that the man who offered Jawitz Properties the mandate had no claim to the home.
“It is obvious that we have been the victim of a fraud or a scam,” Jawitz chair Eskel Jawitz said yesterday.
“We are doing what we can and will get to the bottom of this. It is so embarrassing. I stand and fall by our name and this is very destroying.”
The agency listed the property on July 15 after being approached by Dhanasegaran “Jayce” Archary, who told them he was acting on behalf of the business rescue practitioners tasked with selling off the Guptas’ assets.
Armed with a set of keys to the property, Archery took agent Gail Katz through the expansive compound in Cotswold Drive, which includes three houses, and assisted her with taking photos and videos of the property for the agency’s website.
Three families had viewed the home before the scam was exposed.
Business rescue practitioner (BRP) Mahier Tayob said on Friday he has no idea who Archary is and a criminal case will be opened this week.
Tayob only became aware that the home was on the market after the Sunday Times called him on Friday for comment on the sale.
Meanwhile, a tight-lipped Archary told the Sunday Times he was “a caretaker” who had “helped out” with several other Gupta properties in Johannesburg.
“I help people to get properties. I have my own business involving properties and development,” he said.
“I have no interest in this property. Islandsite [the Gupta company that owns the property] people do not know me well. I was helping them. They were putting it up for sale.”
He admitted he had not spoken to Islandsite directly, but said he had spoken to Sujay Naidoo, the BRP for another Gupta company, Confident Concept, which owns several other Saxonwold properties.
“The property was just to be valued. I don’t know why it was [listed]. This was all done on verbal instructions. I do have the valuation documents. I was charged with getting the valuation. I did and that’s where I stopped.”
He would not say who gave him the keys to the property. He claimed Naidoo instructed him to have the property valued, but Naidoo denied this, saying he is not involved in any way in the Cotswold Drive property.
“It’s not mine to sell. I am involved in selling the Gupta homes in Saxonwold Drive and Avonwold Drive,” Naidoo told the Sunday Times.
He said he knew Archary, and had given him a mandate to “market” Confident Concept’s properties to estate agencies, but “he has not sold a property for me yet”.
The Guptas bought the 6,000m² property, which includes three houses, a tennis court, a swimming pool and parking for 13 cars, on March 19 2005 for R10.5m from well-known South African businessman Brian Menell.
Tayob said none of Islandsite’s properties are being sold.
In an e-mail to Katz, which the Sunday Times has seen, Tayob instructs her to stop the sale.
“It was ascertained that you had been duped … the BRP will not proceed with any legal action against you as it is evident that you have been a victim of a fraudster.”
Katz, who earlier in the week described the property to the Sunday Times as “simply a magnificent piece of real estate which makes one feel like one is in Disneyland”, said she was mortified.
“I was duped. The man had documents claiming to be from the business rescue practitioners. He had keys for the house. He took me on a tour.
“My reputation is one of morality, integrity and honesty. Maybe because of my own code of conduct, I tend to be naive. If I go to an appointment and the man has the keys, what would make me think something was wrong?”
Jawitz said: “Obviously our policies and procedures for determining ownership and getting proof of ownership and letters of authority somewhere have broken down.
“What does this [the attempted sale] serve because he [Archary] could not have gotten the money anyway because of the processes of [property] transfer?
“But, having said that, we have our policy manual. We do what’s right and have to get proof of ownership and that seems to have broken down.”