SARS deputy director Vlok Symington has opened a case of kidnapping‚ Ipid confirms
The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) has confirmed that South African Revenue Service ( SARS) deputy director of law Vlok Symington has opened a case of kidnapping with it. This follows a video clip and media reports on Thursday indicating that Symington had been locked in a boardroom in the SARS head office while the Hawks‚ and SARS boss Tom Moyane's bodyguards attempted to get him to make an affidavit in the fraud case against Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan. “I can confirm that we’ve opened a case of kidnapping. It was registered late yesterday [Wednesday]. It has been assigned to an investigator‚” said Ipid spokesperson Moses Dlamini.“It’s still the beginning of the investigation. It’s difficult to say more.” Dlamini said Ipid was in possession of the video footage and other evidence.Video posted to YouTube by Sebastien Bogart.Symington was the author of the 2009 legal opinion which the Helen Suzman Foundation and Freedom Under Law used to file an application to the Pretoria High Court requesting that the fraud charges against Gordhan be set aside. In that opinion‚ he states that there was "no technicality" stopping SARS from reappointing former deputy commissioner Ivan Pillay on a contract basis after an early retirement payout...
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