Mischievous bar manager nabbed
Long arm of the law finally caught the Fairmount Bowling Club bar manager in connection with selling liquor without a licence.
According to Sandringham police spokesperson Wararnt Officer Moses Maphakela, police went to the bar during a liquor licence operation raid.
Maphakela said “When we checked around the bar we could not find the licence and the person in charge was arrested.”
He said police also confiscated all the liquor in the premises and took it to the police station and the suspect was given R1 500 fine and he is expected to appear at Hillbrow Magistrate’s Court, soon, for selling liquor illegally.
This club belongs to the City of Johannesburg and is run by a committee elected by the bowling members. The North Eastern Tribune spoke to Chad Thomas from IRS Forensic Investigations who has been involved in many investigations involving properties owned by the City, which are under the control of the Johannesburg Property Company (JPC). Thomas said, “We saw the closure of Sandringham Bowling Club due to no longer being a bowling club committee in place and the fact that the premises had turned in to a virtual shebeen selling liquor to under age children.”
He said the situation with Fairmount Bowling Club is that, an outside operator took over the running of the bar for and on behalf of the bowling committee and “ended up hi-jacking the bar and entertainment areas”.
Thomas stated, “One must remember that the bar and the liquor licence issued is for the members of the bowling club and their guests exclusive use and not for general members of the public.”
He said people who were operating the bar on behalf of the committee opened the bar to the public as a commercial venture and the “bowling club was not zoned for business use and this was therefore illegal”.
The club president Allen Elston said the committee had been trying since last year to end the relationship with the bar operators, who were meant to have become club members and run the bar for the club’s benefit but without any success. He said “the club was left with no choice but to withhold the licence so as to comply with their lease agreement with the City of Johannesburg as well as to ensure that liquor was not being sold to members of the public in an illegal manner.” The relieved Elston said the bar will open soon and he was expecting everything to run smoothly.
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