The Port Elizabeth High Court has granted the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) a preservation order against the money Christopher Panayiotou allegedly paid a former employee to find hitmen to kidnap and kill his wife.
The Port Elizabeth High Court has granted the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) a preservation order against the money Christopher Panayiotou allegedly paid a former employee to find hitmen to kidnap and kill his wife.
The order extends to the money Panayiotou allegedly then paid to self-confessed “middleman” Luthando Siyoni to “disappear” after the murder of Jayde Panayiotou on April 21 2015.
“In terms of Section 38 of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act‚ an order is hereby granted prohibiting any person from dealing in any manner with the R35 850 cash held at Kabega Park‚” the order‚ granted on Tuesday morning‚ reads.
The next step is for the AFU to have the money finally forfeited to the state.
When police arrested Siyoni shortly after Jayde’s kidnapping and murder‚ they confiscated R31 300 in cash. At the time‚ Siyoni alleged this was his cut in the R80 000 Panayiotou paid him to organise hitmen to kidnap and kill his wife.
The remaining cash was allegedly paid over to now deceased suspected hitman‚ Sizwezakhe Vumazonke.
The state claims further that Panayiotou then paid Siyoni a further R4 550 during a sting operation which is currently the subject of a trial-within-a-trial.
The trial resumes on June 12.
-TMG Digital/HeraldLIVE
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