South African prosecutors say they will not pursue criminal charges against President Cyril Ramaphosa in relation to the controversial farm theft scandal that nearly brought down the president two years ago.
A former spy chief laid a criminal complaint against Ramaphosa, accusing him of committing irregularities in trying to hide the theft of $4million in cash at his game farm in the north-eastern Limpopo province.
The president denied any wrongdoing, saying that the money stolen from his sofa in 2020 came from the legitimate sale of buffaloes at his Phala Phala farm.
The decision not to bring any charges against Ramaphosa or anyone else came after “a comprehensive investigation process”, prosecutors said.
Ramaphosa survived the so-called “farmgate” scandal and was re-elected as president in June, albeit after being forced to form a coalition, while the criminal investigations were still ongoing.
In 2022, his African National Congress (ANC) used its majority to block an impeachment motion against him over the scandal.
Last year, the anti-corruption watchdog cleared Ramaphosa amid calls for him to resign.
Arthur Fraser, who headed the state security agency between 2016 and 2018, claimed that Ramaphosa hid the farm theft from police and tax authorities and instead organised the kidnapping and questioning of the robbers in an attempt to silence them.
The president was also accused of money laundering, tax evasion and breaching foreign currency laws over the cash, which was in US dollars.
Ramaphosa acknowledged the burglary but denied the criminal allegations, saying he had reported the break-in to the police.
He has also disputed the amount of money involved and said it came from legitimate sales of game from his animal-breeding farm.
The highly publicised burglary threw Ramaphosa’s government into turmoil ahead of a crucial party leadership vote.
But an investigation into the matter has found insufficient evidence of corruption and money laundering, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said on Thursday.
In a statement, Director of Public Prosecutions in Limpopo Ivy Thenga said the decision not to prosecute Ramaphosa was taken after a “careful assessment” of all available evidence presented to the prosecutors by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI).
“The available evidence presented to prosecutors cannot sustain any charge,” NPA spokesman Mthunzi Mhaga said.
The probe also covered any possible contravention of income tax and exchange control regulations, the prosecutor added.
The case against three people accused of breaking into Ramaphosa’s farm is set to continue next month.
They appeared at a Limpopo court earlier this week on several charges, including money laundering and house-breaking. bbcnews