Safa president Jordaan seeks to avoid arrest over R1.3m fraud case

Danny Jordaan has approached the court to block his arrest, which was scheduled for Wednesday, in connection with a R1.3m fraud and theft case.

The South African Football Association (Safa) president filed papers in the Johannesburg high court on Tuesday seeking to interdict his imminent arrest and prosecution.

Johannesburg high court judge Willem Wepener's secretary Mornay Moolman confirmed to Sowetan the matter had been enrolled and was scheduled to be heard on Thursday.

In his affidavit, Jordaan said the intended arrest was communicated on November 7 to his attorney Victor Nkhwashu by “Captain Magano”.

“He informed my attorney he intended to arrest Mr Hluyo and I pursuant to the matter, which he had been investigating and had obtained arrest warrants and wanted to arrange for us to be brought in on November 13.”

Gronie Hluyo is Safa's CFO and Jordaan's co-accused in the matter. At the centre of the case is the allegation the two spent R1.3m of Safa money without authorisation.

The respondents in the matter are the Hawks, the minister of police, Capt Magano, the Gauteng director of public prosecutions and the national director of public prosecutions.

Jordaan argued in his affidavit the case is based on a search and seizure operation that happened earlier this year, which he is challenging. He said the case can only be on the roll after a determination has been made on that matter.

According to Jordaan, his attorney was shocked when he was informed of the intended arrest, saying the pending review proceedings mentioned in the notice of motion heard earlier this year seek to set aside the search and seizure warrants issued on March 6 by magistrate Petrus Arnoldus Koen, which is the basis of the intended arrests, “if not the substantial basis”.

“It follows that if the search and seizure warrants are set aside as unlawful, and all evidence gathered pursuant thereto returned and/or destroyed, the intended arrests would have no basis in fact and law and would similarly be unlawful.”

Jordaan also said the purpose of the review proceedings was to set aside the “unlawful search and seizure warrants” issued on March 6 in the following terms:

• setting aside the search and seizure warrants issued by magistrate Koen on March 6;
•  declaring the search and seizure operation carried out by the DPCI (Hawks) on March 8 at Safa's premises at 76 Nasrec Road, Nasrec Ext 3, invalid and unlawful;
• ordering the members of the DPCI to return all of the items and information confiscated during the said search and seizure operation;
• ordering the DPCI to destroy all copies of the information and/or documents or items confiscated, whether physical or electronic, and;
• ordering the DPCI, alternatively those respondents who oppose the application, to pay the costs of the application, including the costs consequent on the engagement of two counsel, on a scale as between attorney and client, jointly as the case may be, the one absolving the other.

He said in the application he and Hluyo seek the following relief in an urgent basis:

• The warrants of arrest issued in respect of Mr Hluyo and I are suspended, pending the outcome of the review proceedings.
• The respondents and/or any person authorised by them are interdicted and restrained from the execution of the warrants of arrest communicated on November 7 against Mr Hluyo and I with immediate effect, until the finalisation of the review application proceedings.

Jordaan’s legal woes began after a search and seizure operation at the Safa offices on March 8. The raid was related to the appointment of two service providers, Grit Communications and Badger Security.

Grit was hired to spruce up Jordaan’s image at the height of damning allegations against him. In its report to Safa in the first 16 months of its work, the PR firm detailed how it sought to soften the blow of perceived hostile media coverage and to place Jordaan at the centre of reviving the battered image of the organisation. At the time, Jordaan was facing allegations that included rape accusations made by singer Jennifer Ferguson.

Jordaan said Grit was appointed to safeguard “the good name and reputation of Safa” between October 2017 and August 2019 and was paid R1.3m over three years. He said the payment was accounted for in Safa’s annual financial statements.

He said Badger was paid R40,250 to provide security services for Safa's 2018 elective conference. He claimed it was former Safa CEO Dennis Mumble who appointed them.

“It appears the complainants in the criminal matter in the investigations are Mr Mumble and Malesela Mooka, former Safa NEC member. Mr Mumble and Mr Mooka are disgruntled and have an axe to grind. This brings to question the credibility of the complaint,” he said.

“Moreover, Mr Mooka seems to be the principal complainant in the criminal investigation and premises his complaints on information purportedly provided by Mr Mumble, which is hearsay evidence.”

He said the two men's principal complaint seems to be that Safa's processes were flouted and the service providers were appointed “for my personal gain”.

“I dispute these allegations. It is unclear what Mr Hluyo is alleged to have done and there seems to be no alleged evidence against him whatsoever.”

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* This story first appeared on SowetanLIVE.