Erotic-club owner Andrew Phillips failed in his Constitutional Court bid to have a restraining on his assets rescinded, the court ruled on Friday.
Phillips was arrested in 2000 to face charges under the Sexual Offences Act and a restraining order was placed on his assets as part of the state’s bid to hold them as security against the proceeds of a crime, which has yet to be ruled on.
He has denied running a brothel, living off the proceeds of prostitution, procuring women to have sex with clients, employing illegal immigrants and committing perjury.
Phillips’s businesses included The Ranch and the Titty Twister in Johannesburg, which are currently under curatorship.
During the Constitutional Court application to have the restraining order rescinded, his lawyer said the properties in question were deteriorating and that R7,5-million was owed in rates, because he was not allowed to have anything to do with the properties while the order was in place.
The state argued that Phillips could have applied either to widen the scope of the duties of the curator looking after the properties, or to replace him, if he was unsatisfied.
On Friday, the court recommended that the powers of the curator be amended to allow rent to be collected on the properties to raise money for their upkeep.
The judges also found that Phillips had not exhausted all the possibilities available to him.
The court has turned down a number of applications recently on these grounds.
The application was dismissed. — Sapa