Court dismisses plea to pardon State Capture accused
They face 11 charges including fraud and Contravention of Regulation 4 of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act.
The National Prosecuting Authority said all the individuals are linked to a corruption case involving mine rehabilitation.
Spokesperson of the NPA's Investigating Directorate Against Corruption, Henry Mamothame, said the accused were also in Contravention of Regulation 7 of the National Environmental Management Act.
Additionally, they were charged with money laundering, forgery, uttering and perjury. The alleged state capture offenders approached the court seeking a discharge. Their application was made in terms of Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act.
'The accused include the former Deputy Director-General of the then Department of Mineral Resources, Joel Raphela,' said Mamothame.
Charged with Raphela are Ronica Ragavan, Pushpaveni Govender and entities linked to the Gupta family, which are Optimum Coal Mine, Koornfontein Mines and Tegeta Exploration and Resources.
Mamothame regards the court's dismissal of the application as a victory for justice. Additionally, IDAC has been granted leave to amend the indictment on certain charges against the accused.
All the accused have pleaded not guilty to the 11 charges. In conclusion, the matter was postponed to 25 May 2026.
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