Share

State Capture Inquiry: Booysen details Gupta visit in a Rolls Royce

Former KwaZulu-Natal Hawks head Johan Booysen has detailed how Duduzane Zuma, son of former president Jacob Zuma, drove him to the Gupta family home in a Rolls Royce.

Testifying before the judicial commission of inquiry into state capture on Friday, Booysen told deputy chief justice Raymond Zondo that he received a call from Duduzane Zuma, who asked to meet him at the Gautrain station in Sandton.

Booysen said he asked his son, Eben to accompany him. The former KZN Hawks head said when he met with Duduzane Zuma, he drove with him in the Rolls Royce while his son followed them in his Toyota Corolla. 

Booysen testified that they unexpectedly ended up at the Gupta compound in Saxonwold in Johannesburg. 

He said when he entered the house, they were asked to hand over their phones and they were introduced to Rajesh "Tony" Gupta. The meeting happened on August 16, 2015.  

Booysen said Tony Gupta brought up the fact that he was shortlisted as a possible candidate to head up the Hawks.

READ: State capture inquiry: 'All hell broke loose' when Ntlemeza took over as Hawks head - Booysen

He said he found it strange that Gupta knew this because it was not public knowledge. 

"He [Gupta] said to me, I understand you might become the head of the Hawks. Chair, very few people knew that I have been shortlisted for the post. Although there was a newspaper article in KwaZulu-Natal… that said 'Booysen is going for Dramat's job'…"

Booysen said Gupta told him that if he got appointed then they should have supper in KZN. He said during that meeting no promises were made and no undertaking were given.

Asked what the purpose of the meeting was, Booysen said: "Chair, I suspect that what he [Gupta] was trying to tell me was that, should I be appointed, although he did not say that, is that he probably would have had a hand in my appointment and that I might have been indebted to him, although it was never said, those were my conclusions."

When asked if he took steps to report the meeting, Booysen said it had become "abundantly clear to me" that Berning Ntlemeza, who was the acting Hawks head at the time, "was not someone to be trusted".

"I had to report to him, and I was definitely not going to report such a thing to him," he said.

Booysen said he only reported the alleged meeting after Ntlemeza was removed from office. He said he then decided to prepare a statement about the Gupta meeting and handed it to Yolisa Matakata, who replaced Ntlemeza. 

The hearings continue on Monday.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should the Proteas pick Faf du Plessis for the T20 World Cup in West Indies and the United States in June?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Faf still has a lot to give ...
63% - 240 votes
No! It's time to move on ...
37% - 143 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.96
+1.3%
Rand - Pound
23.72
+1.0%
Rand - Euro
20.33
+1.1%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.39
+0.8%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+1.4%
Platinum
914.20
+0.2%
Palladium
1,009.50
+0.5%
Gold
2,328.04
+0.5%
Silver
27.43
+1.0%
Brent Crude
88.02
-0.5%
Top 40
68,393
-0.3%
All Share
74,336
-0.2%
Resource 10
61,669
+2.0%
Industrial 25
102,800
-1.2%
Financial 15
15,818
-0.1%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE