Gupta-linked associates back in court for Estina R37m fraud case

The trial of two alleged Gupta associates linked to the R37.7 million Estina diary project fraud will resume on Monday, 3 July.

Kamal Vasram and Saliesh Indurjeeth, who are out on bail, are expected to appear in the Pretoria Regional Court, which will continue hearing testimony from a state witness.

The pair face charges of fraud, contravention of Section 54(1)(A) of the International Trade Administration Act, and contravention of regulation 22 of the Exchange Control Act charges arising from a joint investigation by Sars and the National Prosecuting Authority‘s (NPA) Investigating Directorate.

Charges

The charges arise from a joint investigation by Sars and the Investigating Directorate (ID) into the failed Free State project, and the duo have pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

A pasteurisation plant imported from India was invoiced to Estina by Gateway, an alleged Gupta front company in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The NPA said Estina submitted fraudulent customs clearance documents in support of a VAT refund claim to the value of more than R37.7 million.

“The customs declaration was scrutinised, whereupon the declared value of more than R37.7m for a ‘new’ pasteurisation plant was suspected to be excessively high,” the NPA said.

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Testimony

In March, the court heard evidence from the state’s first witness, Piet Swart, a Sars investigator with over 40 years of experience.

Swart testified how the custom clearance document (SAD 500 and invoice), which included a customs declaration form, was submitted via Sars’ electronic data information (EDI) system by UTI as the clearing agent on behalf of Estina, to support a fraudulent VAT refund claim.

The documents related to nine shipping containers that carried different dairy equipment purportedly from Gateway Limited – an alleged Gupta front company in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Explaining to the court, Swart said: “UTI is registered with Sars and is a clearing agent which conducted business on behalf of its client, Estina.”

Arrest

Vasram and Indurjeeth were arrested early last year after they were “directly linked” to the failed dairy farm project.

Editor’s note: The picture in this article was changed on 4 July 2023. The initial picture used was of Kamal Vasram and Saliesh Indurjeeth in court with another person who is not involved in this particular case.

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