tobacco trafficking – Black First Land First

BLF charges Adriano Mazzotti with serious criminal offences

Black First Land First (BLF) has today charged Adriano Mazzotti with tobacco trafficking, money laundering, fraud, corruption, bribery and tax evasions at the CR Swartz Police Station in Durban. We have asked for key persons to be subpoenaed and questioned in furtherance of bringing Mazzotti to book.

The charges are based mainly on the admission of guilt by Mazzotti in his sworn affidavit to the South African Revenue Service (SARS) on 6 May 2014, which he submitted in furtherance of settling the outstanding taxes of Carnilinx which amounted to R600 million.

In his affidavit Mazzotti admits to fraud, money laundering, tobacco smuggling, tax evasion, and bribery and indicates the following:

a. Carnilinx, in which he is a director, illegally acquired two tons of tobacco weekly spanning 40 weeks or so. To avoid any detection of criminal wrongdoings no records of the manufacturing process were kept by Carnilinx.

b. He and fellow directors, Kyle Phillips and Mohammadh Sayed, used the proceeds of this crime to pay the people concerned and the balance was retained by the three of them in equal proportion. They used a substantial part of these proceeds as ‘company expenses, engaging in expensive dinners, entertaining business people, politicians and other people.

c. The proceeds of crime were used to entertain Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) President, Julius Malema; pay for the EFF to register for the 2014 elections, and assist to pay Malema’s tax debt.

d. In 2013 Mazzotti and his fellow directors in Carnilinx bribed a SARS official to hand them official documents.

e. In 2013/2014 they (Mazzotti and his fellow directors in Carnilinx) attempted to bribe Ivan Pillay, the then acting SARS commissioner and Johann van Loggerenberg the investigations head, with R800,000.

Although Mazzotti indicates that Carnilinx intends to plead guilty to the offences committed, neither Mazzotti nor any of the other directors of Carnilinx were criminally prosecuted and or made to account for their wrongdoings via the criminal and civil courts respectively. The tax bill of Carnilinx has instead completely disappeared and Mazzotti has confirmed that Carnilinx is tax compliant.

While the charges are preferred against Mazzotti, this case has revealed the following evidence on the issue of Malema and the EFF:

1. Mazzotti paid for EFF’s registration in the amount R200,000 to contest the 2014 elections.

2. Mazzotti’s partner and his co-director in Carnilinx, Kyle Phillips, gave Malema a loan of R1 million to assist with paying his tax debt. Malema has not disputed this and in fact admitted this fact to SARS (South African Revenue Service). Both Mazzotti or Phillips are ‘partners-in-crime in Carnilinx’.

3. In accepting a loan of R1 million from Phillips, Malema accepted the proceeds of crime.

4. Similarly, in accepting the R200,000 for the EFF to contest the 2014 elections, Malema accepted the proceeds of crime.

5. Malema’s conduct amounts to corruption.

6. Malema knows that Mazzotti and the other directors of Carnilinx would bribe top SARS officials with no hesitation.

Furthermore,evidence suggests that in 2017, ‘Mazzotti became a founder member and director of Dithabeng Mining, an opencast mine in Mphahlele.‘ When the miners protested and obtained an interdict against Dithabeng Mining, they were told by the EFF to resume duties because ‘Malema won’t tolerate production delays’. The bond between Mazzotti and Malema indeed runs deep.

Malema must answer these questions:

a. Why have you not asked SARS, Hawks and the NPA to fully investigate the relevant crimes and prosecute the perpetrators?

b. Did you know that Craig Williamson, the apartheid spy and assassin, was one of Mazzotti’s business partners?

c. Why are you ‘mingling’ with the likes of criminals like Mazzotti and gangster killers like Mikey Schultz?

Mazzotti, the Italian crime syndicate leader, has clearly funded political parties like the EFF to protect himself. He has captured parliament and the state via money gained from criminal activities.

It is shocking that both the SARS and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) have done nothing to prosecute Mazzotti for his crimes. He is obviously protected.

BLF will be pursuing the charges against Mazzotti to its finality. Whoever else is found to be implicated with Mazzotti will be charged in due course accordingly. We shall not rest until true justice is obtained against the white monopoly capital criminal.

Delivered by the President of Black First Land First, Andile Mngxitama

Read the affidavit of the BLF President in support of the charges against Adriano Mazzotti here.

28 July 2018

Contact details:

Black First Land First
Email:[email protected]
Facebook: Black First Land First
Twitter: @black1stland1st
Website: http://www.blf.org.za

Zanele Lwana
(Deputy President)
Cell: +27 79 986 7225

Lindsay Maasdorp
(National Spokesperson)
Cell: +27 79 915 2957

Brian Tloubatla
(Head of Media & Communications)
Cell: +27 82 216 7664

Affidavit of Andile Mngxitama: charges against Adriano Sauro Lorenzo Mazzotti

I the undersigned Andile Mngxitama do hereby make oath and state:

1. I am the President of Black First Land First (BLF), and I am duly authorized to depose to this affidavit on behalf of BLF.

2. The contents of this affidavit are, unless the context indicates otherwise, within my personal knowledge. They are to the best of my knowledge both true and correct. The submissions of law that I make are based on the advice given to me by my legal team.

3. BLF is a Black Consciousness, Pan Afrikanist movement which embraces the Sankarist leadership ethos. It is registered with the Independent Electloral Commission as a political party and is situated at Office 602, Renaissance Building, corner of Main and Elloff Streets, Gandhi Square, Johannesburg.

4. The purpose of this affidavit is to provide evidence in support of the charges of tobacco trafficking, money laundering, fraud, corruption, bribery and tax evasion against Adriano Sauro Lorenzo Mazzotti that BLF is laying against him. I submit that it is the evidence of the crimes of Carnilinx as suggested inter alia by Jacques Pauw read in line with the content of the affidavit of Mazzott (elaborated below), that serves to support the charges being preferred against Mazzotti by BLF.

5. The South African Police Services (SAPS) and its investigative unit, the Hawks, are requested to subpoena the following people for questioning and further investigation towards prosecuting Mazzotti:

a. Jacques Pauw regarding the relevant evidence in his book ‘The President’s Keepers’; his message on twitter on 4 July 2018 indicated below; and his letter to Julius Malema responding to his denial that he had received a loan from Mazzotti to pay his SARS tax bill.

b. The South African Revenue Service (SARS), which has Adriano Mazzotti’s original affidavit in terms of which he (Mazzotti) admits to his crimes, must be engaged on Mazzotti’s affidavit.

c. The SARS official bribed by Carnilinx in 2013 to hand over official documents to them.

d. The acting SARS commissioner Ivan Pillay and investigations head Johann van Loggerenberg in respect of whom there was attempted bribery by Carnilinx with R800,000.00 during late 2013 or 2014.

e. All the directors of Carnilinx including Mazzotti, Mohammadh Sayed and Kyle Phillips in respect of their criminal activities via Carnilinx.

6.. Jacques Pauw in his book ‘The President’s Keepers’ makes damning claims about, amongst others, Carnilinx boss, Adriano Mazzotti.

7. In this regard Pauw alleged that Mazzotti has confessed to being complicit in numerous crimes including tobacco trafficing, money laundering, fraud, corruption, bribery and tax evasion. According to Pauw, Mazzotti made these admissions in his affidavit to SARS in May 2014.

8. On 4 July 2018 at 11h07 Pauw tweeted a message which suggested the disappearance of Mazzotti’s tax debt to the tune of R600 million; the payment of EFF’s registration fee to contest the 2014 elections by Mazzotti; and the granting of a loan to Malema by Mazzotti to assist with paying his tax debt.

9. Julius Malema responded by sending Pauw a letter in which he denied Pauw’s allegation that he had received a loan from Mazzotti to pay his SARS debt and asked Pauw ‘to set the record straight’.

10. Pauw subsequently responded to Malema. The material aspects of his response are as follows:

a. He was wrong about Malema receiving a loan from Mazzotti towards payment of his tax bill. Malema had actually received a loan of R1 million from Mazzotti’s partner and his co-director in Carnilinx, Kyle Phillips. The above was reported in newspapers in 2015, including the Sunday Times. Malema had not subsequently disputed any of these allegations.

b. The issue of whether Malema had taken a loan from Mazzotti or Phillips is irrelevant as both of them “are partners-in-crime in Carnilinx”. In this regard, “Phillips is the director handling general operations and Mazzotti is in charge of corporate sales and marketing at Carnilinx … (and) [t]hey both hold a 16.6% share of the company”.

c. The evidence he will produce will show “that in accepting a loan from Phillips, (Malema) might unwittingly have accepted the proceeds of crime”. Similarly, in accepting the “R200,000 that Carnilinx paid in 2014 for the registration of the EFF as a political party”, Malema might have accepted the proceeds of crime.

d. On 6 May 2014, Mazzotti made a sworn affidavit of 52 pages which he submitted to SARS in furtherance of settling the outstanding taxes of Carnilinx. To this end Carnilinx’s tax bill totalled “hundreds of millions of rands” in respect of which “[a]n amount of R600 million is often mentioned.”

e. Pauw has in his possession a copy of Mazzotti’s affidavit which he describes in his book ‘The President’s Keepers’ and which indicates criminal activity of Carnilinx and by extension Mazzzotti and the other directors.

f. Mazzotti indicates in his affidavit that he is a “duly authorised representative of Carnilinx”. This means “he speaks on behalf of the other directors, among them Phillips.”

g. One relevant extract from Mazzotti’s affidavit, which is not featured in his book, is from page 30 of the said affidavit. It reads:

“In its drive to promote its business, Carnilinx entered into a host of transactions, some of which were lawful and others corrupt and unlawful.”

h. In this respect the following is instructive:

i. Mazzotti indicates that Carnilinx is in acceptance of its illegal and ‘morally wrong’ acquisition of two tons of tobacco weekly spanning 40 weeks or so. He said, “this was unlawful and morally wrong’.

ii. Mazzotti elaborates on the attempts to hide Carnilinx’s criminal wrongdoings as follows:

“No records were kept of the manufacturing process. This was deliberate as to avoid any detection.”

i. Another important extract from Mazzotti’s affidavit that is not featured in his book, is from page 24 thereof which reads:

“The cash received was utilised to pay the people referred to and the balance was retained by the three of us in equal proportions. I point out, however, that a substantial amount of this money was used by the three of us as company expenses, engaging in expensive dinners, entertaining business people, politicians and other people.”

j. Pauw points out that the three people that Mazzotti makes reference to are, “himself, Kyle Phillips and fellow-director Mohammadh Sayed.”

k. Pauw submitts that Mazzotti in his sworn affidavit “does not just admit to fraud, money laundering, tobacco smuggling and tax evasion, but describes in detail that both he and his fellow directors had absolutely no qualms to bribe SARS officials.”

l. To this end Mazzotti “describes how in 2013 they bribed a lowly SARS official to hand them official documents.” Moreover, “[l]ater that year or early in 2014, they attempted to bribe (the) then acting SARS commissioner Ivan Pillay and investigations head Johann van Loggerenberg with R800,000.”

m. Mazzotti indicates how they “paid this money to a Johannesburg attorney who was supposed to bribe Pillay and Van Loggerenberg (but who) [i]nstead … pocketed the money.”

n. A further revelation in Mazzotti’s affidavit that is not featured in his book, is from page 35 thereof which reads as follows:

“We apologize to Van Loggerenberg and Pillay for doubting their integrity and casting aspersions on their honesty and integrity.”

n. Mazzotti also indicates how an acting judge and senior counsel “was wrong to accept a gift” in the amount of R500,000 cash which was given to him in a bag.

o. Yet another important indication in Mazzotti’s affidavit, not featured in Pauw’s book, is from page 52 thereof. Carnilinx, Mazzotti says “has made a donation in an amount of R200,000 towards a political party”. Pauw correctly concludes that Mazzotti is referring here to the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).

p. An extract from page 49 of Mazzotti’s affidavit indicates that Carnilinx is proposing to plead guilty to the offences he committed in terms of Section 112 of the Criminal Procedure Act. Many years later and nothing has happened to Carnilinx, Mazzotti and its other directors.

q. However, the tax bill of Carnilinx has since disappeared. To this end before his book was published Pauw ‘asked Mazzotti if he was tax compliant.’ Mazzotti ‘confirmed, in writing, that both he and Carnilinx were compliant.’

r. As pointed out above, Mazzotti and the other directors of Carnilinx were prepared to plead guilty. It been four years since Mazzotti’s incriminating affidavit and Mazzotti, Phillips and the other directors of Carnilinx (implicated in the crimes indicated in the said affidavit) have not been criminally prosecuted and or made to account for their wrongdoings via the civil courts. Moreover nothing has happened to the assets of Carnilinx and its directors which have evidently been acquired via the proceeds of crime. The Assets Forfeiture Unit (AFU) must be employed in this respect.

11. It must be stated that although Mazzotti indicates a plea of guilty regarding the offences he admits to it is nonetheless important that a thorough investigation be conducted by the SAPS and Hawks so as to ensure that any statement of guilt by Mazzotti covers all the details of the relevant crimes he has committed.

12. In all of the above circumstances BLF is hereby charging Adriano Sauro Lorenzo Mazzotti with tobacco trafficing, money laundering, fraud, corruption, bribery and tax evasion and that all the relevant persons including those mentioned herein be subpoenaed and questioned in furtherance of bringing Mazzotti to book.

13. Whoever else is found to be implicated with Mazzotti in the commission of the relevant crimes will be charged in due course accordingly

Andile Mngxitama