Businessman Arrested for Money Laundering After SAPS Found R1.2 Million in His House

Businessman Arrested for Money Laundering After SAPS Found R1.2 Million in His House

  • The South African Police Service busted a Mpumalanga man with over R1 million his house
  • The suspect tried to bribe the officers after they found money under his mattress and in his wardrobe
  • The arrest came after the police were tipped that a man had an unlicensed firearm, and South Africans reacted

Tebogo Mokwena, a Briefly News current affairs journalist in Johannesburg, South Africa, covered criminal activities, police investigations, police shootouts and court cases at Daily Sun for over three years.

A businessman was arrested for money laundering in Komatipoort, Mpumalanga
SA laughingly compared a man to Cyril Ramaphosa after he was arrested for money laundering. Images: Brian A. Jackson and The Good Brigade
Source: Getty Images

KOMATIPOORT, MPUMALANGA — An Mpumalanga man is in jail after the South African Police Service arrested him on 16 March 2025 for money laundering, having an unlicensed firearm and trying to bribe them to prevent the arrest from happening.

What happened in Mpumalanga?

According to IOL, the police received a tip-off from an anonymous person that the 51-year-old businessman owned an unlicensed firearm in Komatipoort. When they arrived at Tonga View, they found that the suspect was in his house. They searched the house, and while searching, they discovered R1.2 million in his house. The money was hidden under the bed and inside the wardrobe. They continued searching and found another bag of money in the house.

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Man tries to bribe cops

The man was allegedly in no mood to be behind bars, so he tried his luck. He tried to bribe the officers with R50,000. This did not work, as he was still arrested. The money was confiscated, and he is expected to appear before the Nkomazi Magistrates Court in Tonga soon.

The police discovered that the businessman was involved in clearing commercial goods. The provincial commissioner, Major General Zeph Mkhwanazi, applauded the police for the work they did under Operation Vala Umgodi, of which the arrest formed part.

R1.2 million was found in the house of a businessman in Komatipoort
Cops arrested a man for laundering money in Komatipoort. Image: South African Police Service
Source: Facebook

Arrests related to Operation Vala Umgodi

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South Africans compare him to Ramaphosa

Netizens commenting on IOL's Facebook page jokingly compared him to President Cyril Ramaphosa, who hid almost a million dollars on his Pahala Phala farm in Limpopo.

Tony Ganas said:

"He learned from Ramaphosa. Only Ramphosa is protected from money laundering."

Matsarane Mmina Tau asked:

"And the dollar bills found in you know who's couches? How come he was never arrested?"

Mpho Moloi said:

"Yet Cyril was not arrested. This truly is an Animal Farm."

Stephen Dunn said:

"Scams and white collar crime are so rampant in SA, and yet we see little decent convictions because our prosecuting authorities seem not to be able to do their work."

Siphiwokuhle Mabhalandile Nqeto said:

"Evidence will disappear, the docket will disappear and the unnamed businessman's case will be withdrawn. He will return to his operations where he will now be bribing police and government officials."

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Tim Tim aid:

"And yet our president has billions in his mattress."

Sankara Bizela said:

"At least it's not in foreign currency like in Phala Phala."

Vuz'muz Blessing said:

"Inspired by the president."

R37 million goes missing from KwaDukuza Municipality bank account

In another article, Briefly News reported that the MEC of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs in KwaZulu-Natal, Thulasizwe Buthelezi, asked for a report after R37 million went missing from the KwaDukuza Municipality's bank account.

The money reportedly went missing on 31 January this year, and ABSA has been investigating the sudden disappearance. South Africans were in disbelief, and many believed it was looted.

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Source: Briefly News

Authors:
Tebogo Mokwena avatar

Tebogo Mokwena (Current Affairs editor) Tebogo Mokwena is a Current Affairs Editor at Briefly News. He has a Diploma in Journalism from ALISON. He joined Daily Sun, where he worked for 4 years covering politics, crime, entertainment, current affairs, policy, governance and art. He was also a sub-editor and journalist for Capricorn Post before joining Vutivi Business News in 2020, where he covered small business news policy and governance, analysis and profiles. He joined Briefly News in 2023. Tebogo passed a set of trainings by Google News Initiative Email: tebogo.mokwena@briefly.co.za

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