The pending arrest down under of another business associate of slain mining magnate Brett Kebble and the ruling party’s unanimous support for embattled police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi added twists to South Africa’s high-profile murder mystery at the weekend.
The splash of Sunday newspaper coverage — much of it attributed to unnamed sources — followed the arrest this week of businessman Glenn Agliotti.
Both Kebble and Selebi had been friends with Agliotti, who now has the media reputation of being known as “The Landlord” in the drug and smuggling world, a divorcee after two wives dumped him for bigamy and a police informer.
Sunday papers reported that, according to the police and the Scorpions, Agliotti had allegedly approached Kebble’s former security man, Clinton Nassif, to assist in an orchestrated assassination that would leave Kebble’s family with life insurance payouts as he faced major debts.
However, the Afrikaans newspaper Rapport reported that, because Kebble apparently tried to escape the scene, it gave credit to a theory that he may have been killed in an illegal diamond-dealing trap.
“It was known that in his last days Kebble was desperate to get his hands on money and would have done almost anything to make a few million rands to afford his and his family’s high lifestyle,” the report read.
Kebble, who was shot dead in his car in Johannesburg’s northern suburbs in September last year, had reportedly offered Agliotti R1,5-million to have the job done.
The Sunday Times reported that James Stratton, Kebble’s business associate, who is in Australia, had spoken to him two hours before he was gunned down.
Stratton had blocked Kebble family investigator Judge Willem Heath from probing the security company of Clinton Nassif in connection with the murder.
The report read that “an official close to the investigation” had told the Sunday Times investigators were keen to question Stratton after receiving certain information from Nassif.
Nassif reportedly got police to release the vehicle in which Kebble was shot before proper forensic tests had been done.
His arrest for insurance fraud paved the way to Agliotti’s arrest.
Nassif and three others have turned state witness against Agliotti in the Kebble murder case.
Attributing intelligence sources, City Press reported that Agliotti told Nassif Kebble “wants this thing to look like a robbery” and needed “professionals” to do the job.
Nassif contacted infamous club bouncer, Mickey Schultz, and his two accomplices, Faizel Smith and Nigel McGurk, to carry out the “hit”.
City Press‘s report pointed out: “The fact that the Scorpions are prepared to offer immunity from prosecution to the actual killers and go only for Agliotti, is seen as a continuation of the turf war, with the spotlight falling on Selebi and his now-public association with Agliotti.”
The Sunday newspapers’ coverage also gave insight into the who-knows-who and who came from where.
City Press reported that Selebi’s friendship with Agliotti started in 1992 when Selebi headed the Repatriation Unit at Shell House, the African National Congress’s headquarters.
Agliotti donated shoes to help comrades returning from exile.
As the ANC did not have a proper vetting system, the party did not know the backgrounds of people with whom it was dealing.
“Friendships and bonds formed then — but the question is what did Selebi do when he realised that Agliotti is a shadowy character,” City Press quoted Selebi’s aides as saying.
“We know the relations soured. The last time Agliotti met Selebi was in November last year.”
According to the Sunday Times, Agliotti, the grandson of an Italian immigrant, grew up in a family torn apart by tragedy and wealth, and left nothing in the will by his father, who left all to his other son, Julius.
Then there is the reported sour grapes between former Johannesburg International airport (now OR Tambo) security head and former British spy Paul O’Sullivan and Selebi.
O’Sullivan is behind allegations that Selebi allegedly received a R50Â 000 bribe and had a secret overseas account into which criminals paid him money. He also claimed that Selebi had vested interests in the appointment of Kusela Security at the airport because its boss, Noel Ngwenya, was Selebi’s friend.
City Press said that, according to airport sources, O’Sullivan’s problems began when he failed a vetting process after Cabinet decided airports were national key points.
Later, the Airports Company South Africa felt that a five-year security plan for the airport was sub-standard.
According to the Sunday Independent, Nassif’s security company is listed in financial records uncovered by forensic auditors as having received more than R7-million between June 2004 and Kebble’s death last year for “security reasons”.
The Sunday Times reported that Nassif had become a multimillionaire after having grown up in Mayfair, Johannesburg.
According to a City Press report, he had used his status as a police drugs informant to push his own drugs into and out of the country. — Sapa
You first read about it in the M&G
Over nearly six months, while it ran a series of articles about a crime syndicate associated with slain mining magnate Brett Kebble and police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi, the Mail & Guardian was a voice crying in the media wilderness. The arrest of Glenn Agliotti vindicates the M&G‘s multipart exposé:
May 26: Jackie Selebi’s shady Kebble links
The M&G revealed that Selebi was “linked to shadowy figures” Agliotti and Clint Nassif, who worked with Kebble on security and other projects, and that it was “highly likely” that the Scorpions were investigating this network and Selebi’s links to it. We also reported that Agliotti phoned Selebi soon after Kebble’s murder, and that Agliotti and Kebble had been in phone contact 24 hours earlier, when the latter was close to the murder scene. Agliotti and Selebi insisted there was nothing untoward about their call.
June 2: Commissioner did visit Kebble
We detailed Agliotti’s involvement in R18-million fraudulent cobalt deals and his life as a bigamist. We also confirmed Selebi visited Kebble’s home — despite his earlier denial.
July 14: Kebble link in huge drug bust
We reported the Scorpions’ arrest of five alleged syndicate members on charges of smuggling hashish and dagga worth up to R200-million, in a move linked to a wider investigation of Agliotti and his company. We also detailed a contraband tobacco deal involving some of the same actors, and how a crooked cop involved in the deal boasted of taking Selebi’s orders.
July 28: Arrests: Agliotti is next
We identified Agliotti as “the Landlord”, described by the Scorpions in court as among “the syndicate bosses who tend not to get their hands dirty, but manage their enterprises from a distance”. We also examined Agliotti and Selebi’s friendship — Selebi had originally described Agliotti as “my friend, finish and klaar“, but was now backtracking.
August 4: ‘Landlord gave order to kidnap’
We further described Agliotti’s alleged involvement with the syndicate, including claims that he had a syndicate member locked in a container.
September 22: Scorpions raid Agliotti
We reported that the Scorpions had raided Agliotti’s home and business, and that the warrant indicated they were interested in the syndicate’s links with police and Palto, a shady undercover operation linked to Selebi that freelanced for police.
September 29: Selebi, Agliotti and the dirty cops
We expanded on Palto’s role and Selebi’s downplaying of his ties with Palto head Paul Stemmet.
October 27: Kebble’s security boss nabbed
We reported the arrest of Nassif, Agliotti’s friend and former Kebble security adviser, as part of the Scorpions’ larger investigation. We said “Nassif’s arrest could blow the case wide open … he could turn state witness”.
November 3: Kebble murder: The noose tightens
We named the Scorpions’ investigation into the criminal network surrounding Kebble — project “Bad Guys”. The investigation encompassed conspiracy to murder, (the Kebble) murder, corruption (Selebi’s alleged receipt of syndicate money, which he denies), drug trafficking and organised crime (including the July drug bust). We reported claims that Nassif interfered with the Kebble murder probe by moving Kebble’s car to a panel-beater and tried to get it cleaned.
November 10: Inside the Selebi dossier
We described how former airport security boss Paul O’Sullivan, on a mission to expose Selebi, contributed to the Scorpions probe. Selebi has accused O’Sullivan of engineering a “smear” against him.
November 17: Kebble arrest: What now for Selebi?
The arrest of Agliotti on suspicion of murdering Kebble has opened perhaps the biggest can of worms in South Africa’s criminal history. The arrest could have grave implications for Selebi.