A lawyer representing a Johannesburg businessman in a case of robbery and extortion against police officers has dumped him in a dramatic new twist after he alleged the entrepreneur was "unreliable".
Makhi Nogaga, who had been representing Sipho Phangwa in a case of kidnapping, extortion, assault and robbery against eight policemen and two civilians, said he could no longer assist his client after he noted that he was not forthcoming with crucial such as bank statements and CCTV footage which could assist the case. The lawyer also revealed that Phangwa had a pending armed robbery case which he represented him.
Phangwa owns a recording studio, a bottle store and student apartments in parts of Auckland Park.
Nogaga declared Phangwa an unreliable client who can’t back up most of the claims he made against 10 men who are currently out on bail. The accused include two civilians and policemen from the Gauteng traffic police (GTP), Johannesburg metropolitan police department (JMPD), SA Police Service (SAPS) and crime intelligence unit.
Sowetan has seen a withdrawal letter dated September 2 sent to Phangwa.
Phangwa had claimed that in June, a group of police officers followed him from Auckland Park to his Bryanston home where they assaulted him and his wife and demanded R300,000 to make a murder case against him disappear.
In the story that Sowetan published, Phangwa alleged that the group put him in the boot of a car and drove to an ATM in Joburg CBD where they took R15,000 from his bank account.
But Nogaga said Phangwa could not provide supporting evidence on his claims.
“Phangwa said he drove to an ATM with some of the officers to withdraw the demanded money but he can’t give me bank statements showing that the mentioned amount was withdrawn from his account on the said day."
Nogaga was appointed as a watching brief in the case set to resume on October 14.
“He told me that he doesn’t know the group of men that followed him to his house but I later found old pictures of him with some of the accused on social media. These are some of the red flags that made me realise that Phangwa is unreliable. He believes everyone is out to get him but he can’t provide supporting evidence to his claims,” said Nogaga.
“He said the accused have been to his bottle store and they have threatened his tenants but when I want to meet with his tenants to verify his claims he always makes up stories. I asked him several times to give me CCTV footage from his businesses to check for evidence and that has never happened,” said Nogaga.
Phangwa said the lawyer was more interested in milking him for money.
He maintained that the video footage and bank statements are available and will be used in court. Phangwa said he only knew two women in the photo who are now linked to some of the accused.
“I did not go looking for Nogaga. He came to my house after I was robbed and offered to assist. He only wanted money from me. He was making money out of my problems. I paid him R30,000 for nothing. He wanted me to pay him an additional R200,000 for being a watching brief. I refused to pay him, that is the reason he is making all these false claims,” said Phangwa.
Nogaga, however, told Sowetan he first met Phangwa in March this year after Phangwa was arrested in December 2020 for armed robbery in Soweto. The case is set to resume on September 29, said Nogaga.
“I was representing him in that case. He called me to assist in that case two months before he was allegedly assaulted and robbed by the police. The R200,000 he is talking about included the Orlando case. I had not billed him for watching brief,” Nogaga said.
Phangwa insisted there were no pending cases against him.
"I have expensive cars and a house in Bryanston. Somebody like me will never be involved in petty crimes because it will be easy to find me. I have fixed assets worth R50m."
Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) spokesperson Lizzy Suping said the extortion and robbery case is still in court and all questions about it must be directed to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
NPA spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane could not be reached for comment. JMPD spokesperson Xolani Fihla confirmed the accused officers are back on duty.
“Our internal investigation regarding this matter has been paused until such time a factual report is received from Ipid which indicates what the officers did. JMPD does not investigate criminal matters. We rely on those investigating this matter to give full details, especially in criminal matters before the department can take further steps,” said Fihla.
nzimandeb@sowetan.co.za
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