By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The formal application for the extradition of Rajesh and Atul Gupta from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been submitted to the country’s central authority.
This was confirmed by Justice Minister Ronald Lamola and National Director of Public Prosecutions Shamila Batohi during a briefing on Monday afternoon.
The purpose of the briefing was to provide an update on a number of mutual legal assistance and extradition matters that South African authorities are involved in, said Lamola.
The NPA has until 1 August to formally apply for the extradition of the Guptas from the UAE and is currently involved in extradition litigation against Bushiri in the Malawi Magistrates Court.
“On 18 July 2022, a request was received from the National Director of Public Prosecutions for the extradition of the Gupta Brothers from the United Arab Emirates to the Republic of South Africa to stand trial on charges of Fraud, Money Laundering in terms of Prevention of Organised Crime Act, 1998 and Corruption contrary of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act.”
The request is made in accordance with the Extradition Treaty between South Africa and the UAE as well as the United Nation Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) which is a multilateral international convention to which both countries are Member States. We can confirm that the extradition request has been duly submitted to the UAE central authority, Lamola said.
“We can also confirm that this is within the 60 day period the Republic of South Africa was expected to submit the request in terms of the treaty,” he said.
The Agreements on Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) in Criminal Matters and Extradition between South Africa and the Middle Eastern country was initially signed in 2018.
Lamola added that judgment on the witnesses in the extradition hearing of Bushiri is expected to be delivered in August.
Malawi received the formal extradition request formal for the Enlightened Christian Gathering (ECG) church leader and his wife, Mary, from the South African government on 5 December.
The Bushiris are wanted in connection with a fraud and money laundering case to the alleged tune of R102 million.
The government’s extradition request was submitted in terms of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) protocol, with the hearing then proceeding in the Lilongwe Magistrate’s Court in Malawi.
NDPP Batohi hailed the request for the extradition of the Gupta brothers as “an important milestone”.
“The submission of the formal application request for the arrest and extradition of the Gupta brothers is an important milestone in the NPA’s commitment to hold accountable perpetrators of state capture and uphold the rule of law.
“It reaffirms our resolve to be the lawyers of the people and seek collective justice for our country,” Batohi said.
However, this process for the Guptas “could take several months”.
“As this process unfolds, and the extradition application is heard in UAE courts, the NPA will continue to collaborate and support its counterparts in the UAE to ensure that the Gupta brothers are extradited to face justice in South Africa.
“Whereas this process could take several months, as the NPA we will continue with our commitment to deliver for impact. The country demands this of us, and we are ready to keep moving to bring justice, “she concluded.
Lamola meanwhile has denied claims by the Namibian government it refused to provide legal assistance in the case involving Imanuwela David, the alleged mastermind of the Phala Phala farm break-in and robbery.
He said the request it received was about an investigation of a possible infringement of Namibia’s Organised Crime Act.
It was received by the Specialised Commercial Crime Unit (SCCU), an arm of the National Prosecuting Authority, to assess if the request did not involve foreign bribery.
The SCCU, however, could not immediately process it as it required additional information from Namibian authorities.
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