Describing his first undercover visit to The Ranch, police Inspector Stewart Griffiths said a lap dancer removed her clothing and ”waved her pelvic region in your face actually so close sometimes you could smell it”.
On the second occasion he had to rescue a recently married colleague who had reluctantly agreed to elicit sex from a prostitute as part of his police duties.
This was the evidence of the first witness for the prosecution in the trial of Andrew Phillips, the alleged owner of The Ranch, almost four years after his initial arrest.
Earlier on Monday Phillips pleaded innocent before magistrate Steff Bezuidenhout to six charges. These include:
living ”wholly or partly” off the proceeds of prostitution,
keeping the Ranch and Titty Twister ”as brothels”,
procuring women to have sex with clients,
employing illegal aliens and
perjury.
The alleged contraventions of The Sexual Offences Act and The Aliens Act are said to have taken place from 1987 to 2000 at The Ranch, its adjacent strip bar The Titty Twister, and The Oriental Palace.
The Ranch was closed after raids in February and December 2000.
In a statement submitted by his defense counsel, Mike Hellens, SC, Phillips said the ”ulterior aim” for his prosecution was to obtain his assets.
”There are many other erotic clubs operating in Gauteng, yet no prosecution has been brought before their operators. My prosecution has been a selective process,” he said.
”I have been singled out because the Asset Forfeiture Unit identified me as a source of sizeable assets.”
Griffiths was subsequently called to testify by State advocate Joe Davidowitz. Griffiths said that during December 2000, following instructions regarding the withdrawing of a liquor licence, he went to The Ranch.
He and two colleagues each paid a R250 entrance fee, said Griffiths.
There were a number of bouncers, he said, and the waiting area was ”smart” with a well-stocked bar.
About 20 women chatted to the three undercover policemen. Full sex cost R400, he said. ”None of us took any of their offers”.
They also went through to the strip bar The Titty Twister before leaving.
On the second occasion a few days later more than 25 policemen were involved, as they planned to have a raid.
A colleague was given R400 to pay for sex. Griffiths said he needed to prove that prostitution was taking place on the premises in order to have the liquor licence withdrawn.
The colleague, who was recently married, reluctantly complied after Griffiths promised to ”rescue” him before anything happened. Griffiths gave the signal for the raid, but was unable to find his colleague until a man he identified as Phillips let him into a restricted area at the back.
Hellens, cross-examining Griffiths, submitted that Griffiths’ evidence was inadmissible. He based this on an application to the Johannesburg High Court in which everything seized in the raid was ordered returned to Phillips on the grounds the search warrant was illegally obtained.
Griffiths told the court he had not needed a search warrant, although one was produced on the day of the raid.
Griffiths denied that the Asset Forfeiture Unit had been behind the move to have the liquor licence withdrawn. The trial is set to run until January 23 this year. – Sapa