Latest news with #Modack
IOL News
29-07-2025
- IOL News
Judge recusal pushes Nafiz Modack's tax case to 2026
Alleged underworld kingpin Nafiz Modack Image: File Alleged underworld figure Nafiz Modack's tax matter is set to start next year. His co-accused won't be happy as they'll now have to wait longer for the ball get rolling thanks to him being tied-up in another case. This comes after Modack successfully got Judge Mark Sher to recuse himself, as the judge had previously dealt with his bail appeal in March 2023 in the case where he stands accused of murdering top cop Lieutenant-Colonel Charl Kinnear. Modack, along with eight others including his mother and brother, are accused of defrauding SARS out of R46 million in a dodgy tax refund scheme. The trial was expected to start yesterday, but thanks to the recusal, the court heard there was not enough time to appoint a new judge, so the matter was shifted to January 2026. Despite the delay, Modack still needs time to prepare and has asked for an electronic device to go through all the court documents behind bars. Meanwhile, the court heard that bogus accountant and co-accused Faried van der Schyff had been given a device to prepare for the trial, but it was taken back after he was sentenced to three years direct imprisonment in another tax fraud case, which was heard at the Cape Town Regional Court. The court also heard that while the Kinnear murder trial takes a break later this year, Modack will have two months to get his ducks in a row for the tax matter. Get your news on the go, click here to join the Cape Argus News WhatsApp channel. Cape Argus
IOL News
21-07-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Modack tax fraud trial delayed as judge recuses himself
Alleged underworld figure Nafiz Modack has scored a small victory in his tax fraud case after the judge agreed to step aside. Judge Mark Sher has recused himself from the R46 million SARS fraud trial just weeks before it was due to start. As a result, Modack and his co-accused will have to wait even longer to have their day in court. Modack's lawyer, Advocate Bash Sibda told the court last month his client wouldn't get a fair trial if Sher stayed on the case after he presided over Modack's bail appeal in March 2023, in the case where he stands accused of murdering cop Lieutenant-Colonel Charl Kinnear.
IOL News
21-07-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Modack tax fraud trial delayed as judge recuses himself
Alleged underworld figure Nafiz Modack has scored a small victory in his tax fraud case after the judge agreed to step aside. Judge Mark Sher has recused himself from the R46 million SARS fraud trial just weeks before it was due to start. As a result, Modack and his co-accused will have to wait even longer to have their day in court. Modack's lawyer, Advocate Bash Sibda told the court last month his client wouldn't get a fair trial if Sher stayed on the case after he presided over Modack's bail appeal in March 2023, in the case where he stands accused of murdering cop Lieutenant-Colonel Charl Kinnear.
Daily Maverick
24-06-2025
- Daily Maverick
Modack's bookkeeper gets three-year tax fraud sentence
Faried van der Schyff, a former SARS employee, was sentenced to three years' direct imprisonment for tax fraud. He is also alleged underworld figure Nafiz Modack's bookkeeper. The Cape Town Regional Court has sentenced Faried van der Schyff, the bookkeeper of the 'Modack Family Business', to three years in prison for tax fraud, failure to register as a tax practitioner and illegal possession of a cellphone while in custody. The case, separate from the R46-million tax fraud matter against alleged underworld figure Nafiz Modack, stems from Van der Schyff illegally operating as a tax practitioner between 2016 and 2019. The court, which handed down its sentence on Friday, 20 June, gave Van der Schyff three years' direct imprisonment for fraud, two years for failing to register as a tax practitioner, and two years for illegal possession of a cellphone in prison. The sentences will run concurrently. The sentencing comes weeks after Modack was convicted for the first time on 6 June 2025, of corruption charges. NPA Western Cape spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said Van der Schyff provided tax advice to people in Belhar, Athlone and surrounding areas, giving clients the impression that he was knowledgeable and equipped to address all their SARS-related responsibilities. He worked for SARS in the 1990s. 'The accused incorrectly dealt with the tax affairs of members of the public. This situation is like a so-called 'attorney' or a so-called 'doctor' rendering services to the public, whereas the person is not registered to render these services,' Ntabazalila explained on Monday. The case stems from an attempt to defraud SARS when Van der Schyff declared that a taxpayer paid employee's tax of more than R225,000, knowing that the taxpayer was not employed and had not paid any employee's tax. The 'Modack Family Business' Van der Schyff is also one of the accused, along with Modack, Modack's mother Ruwaida, his brother Yaseen, as well as Bashier Syce, Nadia Sait, Layla Bedderson, Dominique McLachlan and Kulsum van der Schyff, in the R46-million SARS fraud and corruption case, which centres on the State's allegations that Modack and others claimed VAT refunds that were not owed to them. The State claims the businesses involved were registered as VAT vendors and collectively styled as 'Modack Family Business'. According to the indictment against them, Modack was the head of the family business and, with his mother Ruwaida and Van der Schyff, managed the enterprise's activities. Van der Schyff was previously convicted of fraud in 2020. The fraud was committed in August 2019 in Gordon's Bay, and he was sentenced to a fine of R4,000 or 12 months' imprisonment, wholly suspended for three years on condition that he was not convicted of fraud or a similar offence committed during the period of suspension. Recusal application In a new twist to Modack's SARS case, he requested that Judge Mark Sher recuse himself from the trial. The application centres on Sher's ruling, dismissing his appeal against a decision to deny him bail in the Charl Kinnear murder case. Advocate Bash Sibda, counsel for Modack, highlighted specific paragraphs from the judgment which they submitted raised legitimate concerns about Sher's continued involvement. The paragraphs referred to include Sher's comments: 'Modack and [co-accused Jacques] Cronje are a danger to society and need to be kept inside a correctional facility pending the outcome of their trials. 'As is further evident from my discussion of the evidence, it appears that Modack is the head of a sprawling criminal enterprise which has committed several serious offences over a number of years.' The State is considering its position. A finding on the recusal will be delivered in July, while the SARS fraud trial is set to begin on 28 July. DM
Eyewitness News
21-06-2025
- Eyewitness News
Bogus tax practitioner gets 3 years behind bars for defrauding SARS out of R60k
JOHANNESBURG - A bogus tax practitioner linked to alleged underworld boss Nafiz Modack will spend three years behind bars for defrauding the South African Revenue Service (SARS) out of R60,000. Faried van der Schyff, who is also a co-accused in Modack's organised crime trial, was sentenced in the Cape Town Regional Court on Friday. It's understood that the 59-year-old posed as a registered tax consultant and illegally submitted documents to SARS, deceiving clients and pocketing the money. He was convicted on five charges, including income tax fraud, violations of the Tax Administration Act, and contravention of the Correctional Services Act. Hawks spokesperson Zinzi Hani said, 'It was reported that van der Schyff committed fraud from 2016 to 2019 by operating illegally as a tax practitioner, without being registered with the South African Revenue Service.' Van der Schyff remains a co-accused in the Western Cape High Court trial involving Modack and 14 others, a case with nearly 3,000 charges, including murder, extortion and racketeering.
