Publication: Sapa Issued: Johannesburg Date: 2005-08-18 Reporter: Sapa Reporter:

Scorpions Take Hard Drive, Notes from Zuma's Home

 

Publication 

Sapa
SCORPIONS-6TH-LD-ZUMA
Date

2005-08-18

Issued

Johannesburg

Reporter

Sapa

 

The Scorpions left former deputy president Jacob Zuma's Johannesburg home on Thursday with two computer hard drives wrapped in green plastic and two boxes filled with papers and notes.

They sped off down Epping road in Forest Town shortly after noon and it was not known whether the raid, which began at daybreak, was over.

Earlier Zuma, dressed in a long-sleeved white shirt, was seen accompanying the Scorpions as they walked through the garden to the back of the house.

The Durban home of Zuma's financial adviser Schabir Shaik was also raided by the Scorpions on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Zuma's personal lawyer Julie Mahomed told Sapa that her Johannesburg office was also being raided.

"They're busy raiding my offices right now," Mahomed told Sapa at 12.20pm.

Mahomed was the lawyer who drew up a so-called "revolving loan" agreement between Shaik and Zuma in 1999.

No original copy of this agreement has been found to date.

The agreement was produced in support of evidence that Zuma had not taken a bribe from Shaik but had meant to repay money given to him.

Asked to confirm whether the house of Zweli Mkhize, KwaZulu-Natal's economic affairs MEC had also been raided, his spokesman said: "We are not discussing the matter at all."

Both Mahomed and Mkhize were called as witness for Shaik's fraud and corruption trial.

Mkhize's evidence was related to his tenure as treasurer general of the African National Congress in KwaZulu-Natal.

Former president Nelson Mandela had given R2 million to Zuma, half of which was destined for the Jacob Zuma Education Trust Fund and the other half for a company called Development Africa.

Development Africa was a trust fund set up to deal with welfare issues not strictly in the budget of the ANC.

However, when Shaik saw the remaining R1 million in Zuma's account he had no idea what it was for and used it for various payments, including the payment of debts in his own company. Those debts were mainly linked to Zuma, his trial was told.

Shaik still owes R500 000 to Development Africa.

The National Prosecuting Authority scheduled a media briefing in Pretoria for 2.30pm.

With acknowledgement to Sapa.