- Sources say some of the assets are in a state of disrepair
- Seretse wants his property back
GAZETTE REPORTER
There are growing concerns around the state of businessman Bakang Seretse’s assets which have been placed under civil forfeiture by the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crimes (DCEC).
These assets are alleged to be proceeds of crime from P280 million misappropriated from the National Petroleum Fund (NPF).
Sources close to the matter say some of the assets are not adequately secured and that some of them, including vehicles and certain equipment, have gone missing or are in a state of disrepair.
Confiscated
These assets were confiscated from Seretse in 2019. Among the assets believed to be proceeds of the alleged looting of the NPF are a Maserati Ghilibi worth P8 million, two Mercedes Benz sedans, a Lexus LX, a Toyota Rav4, a Ford Ranger, a Volvo XC 90, a Land Cruiser 4.5, a Toyota Hilux, a Ford Fiesta, a Subaru station wagon, a VW Polo, and a Rolls Royce Phantom estimated to be worth P7 million.
Other listed assets include gym equipment, a Rolex watch worth more than P200 000, as well as farm and gardening equipment with a total value in excess of P30 million.
At the time of going to press, DCEC Director General Tshepo Pilane had not responded to this publication’s questions.
State of the assets
Seretse’s attorney, Kgosi Ngakaagae, also expressed concerns about the whereabouts and state of the assets in a brief court appearance on Monday.
“The properties are currently in DCEC custody, and we have no information regarding their storage location,” he said. “There were reports suggesting that some were kept at the DIS warehouse while others were stored at the BDF.
“However, we do not know how safe they are. We can only ascertain that once the courts have granted us access. As far as we are aware, the DCEC is not the best in terms of taking good care of properties held in their custody.”
Permission
Meanwhile, the Gaborone High Court is expected to rule on whether Seretse will be allowed the right to appeal the civil forfeiture case despite missing the deadline for payment of the security bond by four days.
The ruling is anticipated to be made next month. “Before we move to the appeal stage, one is required to ask for permission to make that payment and explain the reason for the delay,” Ngakaagae said.