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Media Statement FREE STATE – On 08 October 2024, the Special Commercial Crimes Court sitting in Welkom sentenced a Zimbabwean national, Tafanzwa Muyambo (41) after pleading guilty to assisting another to benefit from proceeds of unlawful activities. Muyambo’s sentencing originates from a case that was opened against him and his accomplice, Inoque Muchanga on 26 November 2021, after they were caught by Kroonstad police who were conducting their normal routine stop and search on the R726 road outside Kroonstad. They stopped a white Volkswagen Polo driving towards Vredefort with two occupants. Upon searching the vehicle, two bundles of cash to the amount of R1 399 900.00 were found on the back seat. One in a box covered with plastic and the other inside a plastic bag. When asked about how they got the money, they could not account for it. They then offered to pay the police a gratification of R500 000. Muyambo and Muchanga were arrested and charged for corruption, money laundering, and contravention of the Immigration Act. The two accused further revealed that the money was a pay-out from illicit cigarettes. The case was referred to the Welkom based Serious Organised Crime Investigation for further investigation resulting in a forfeiture order being secured by Asset Forfeiture Unit of the NPA and Priority Crime Specialised Investigation on 8 February 2022. An amount of R1 399 900.00 has already been paid into the Criminal Asset Recovery Account (CARA). The court sentenced Muyambo to eight years imprisonment, wholly suspended for five years on condition that he is not found guilty of contravention of the Prevention of Organized Crime Act during the period of suspension. The case against Inoque Muchanga was withdrawn. Ends:
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