Johannesburg – A significant case involving four businessmen charged with artificially inflating the costs related to relocating the manufacturing hub for electric and diesel locomotives from Pretoria to Durban has been postponed until next year by the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court.
The businessmen, Allan Wayne Tichauer, Sudesh Premchand Rocharam, Yaasien Mahomed, and Rafael Bricker, appeared in court on Friday, 13 December 2024, facing money laundering allegations linked to R76 million.
All four individuals and their associated companies are being prosecuted under The Prevention Of Organised Crime Act.
The accused, Tichauer, Rocharam, Mahomed, and Bricker, have been granted bail set at R50,000 each, with strict conditions, including the surrender of their passports to the investigating officer and mandatory weekly check-ins at their local police station.
The case has been rescheduled for 28 January 2025.
Henry Mamothame, spokesperson for the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption, indicated that the case arises from alleged discrepancies identified in the expenses related to relocating the locomotive assembly facility from Pretoria to Durban.
After Transnet awarded a contract for the production of 1,064 electric and diesel locomotives, the accused are alleged to have misrepresented the relocation costs, surpassing R76 million.
“It was further revealed that none of the companies had set up a manufacturing facility in Pretoria prior to the decision to relocate the plant in 2015,” stated Mamothame.
“Following the payment from Transnet to CNR, the company contracted for the relocation, it is alleged that the laundered funds were channeled through various companies owned by the other accused.”
