Alleged Mozambican kidnapping kingpin says he is not 'living in SA illegally'

Esmael Nangy, a Mozambican national alleged to be a kidnapping kingpin operating in South Africa, on Friday hit back at the state's claim he was in the country illegally or that he moved between South Arica and his home country illegally. 

Nangy, who presented a South African ID, said there was an error on his document made by Home Affairs.

Referring to "discrepancies" in his ID book, he said he was issued with an ID in 1992 but misplaced it in 1998 and applied for a new one.

“Upon collection, the new ID book was issued with a single digit different from the original ID book. The fourth digit '7' in the original ID book was erroneously substituted with the digit '1' in the new book,” he said.

Nangy said he approached the department of home affairs and reported the error but was informed it was a clerical error and that the new identity number would belong to him.

Nangy was applying for bail in the Thembisa magistrate’s court on Friday. 

On Wednesday, the state told the court that Nangy’s arrest on January 7 was a result of an official request by the Mozambican government which considers Nangy a fugitive who has been travelling between the two countries illegally. 

Nangy has denied the claim.  

He argued he had presented his passport to border control officers and it was stamped.

Mozambican authorities submitted a formal extradition application on February 2, nearly a month after he was arrested.

Mozambique had reportedly submitted a provisional warrant of arrest for Nangy in July 2022.

In his responding affidavit, Nangy argued his arrest was based on a provisional warrant of arrest and that no formalities had been concluded in respect of his extradition to Mozambique. 

“It is of particular importance for this honourable court to note that I have been arrested on a provisional arrest request and that there is no formal request for my extradition,” said Nangy. 

He also questioned whose responsibility it was to capture travellers' movements across borders.

“I submit that I am not the only party obligated with the task to capture my movement of travel between the borders of the two respective countries. I submit that my duty and obligation is to present my passport document to the authorities empowered with the obligation of recording the movement of travellers, to have my document stamped. It is quite evident that I complied with the duty of having my travel document stamped,” he said. 

On Wednesday, Sgt Kabelo Seanego, who is attached to both the SAPS and Interpol, told the court he discovered discrepancies regarding Nangy’s migration movements between Mozambique and South Africa. Though numerous stamps were made in his passport purporting to document his travel between Mozambique and South Africa, they did not correspond with the migration movements on the databases in both countries.

“I, therefore, cannot respond as to why the authorities both in Mozambique and South Africa failed in their duty to have my movements recorded onto their movement control system. It is a discrepancy that should be explained by the officials of both countries.” 

Nangy said he was not trying to keep a low profile and avoid being traced. 

“[If I were] I would not have my travel documents stamped at the border posts. The respondent (the state) failed to attach any affidavit deposed to by an immigration officer at the Lebombo border post, stating that the stamps affixed to my passport are not genuine,” he said. 

He said the fact that one movement was captured on December 2 2022 when he travelled to Mozambique through the Lebombo border post proved his point that the authorities' failure to capture his movements on other occasions was due to their failure to execute their duties. 

In his founding affidavit, Seanego explained that according to the national immigration service in Mozambique, Nangy’s last captured movement was a departure through the Ressano Garcia border post on November 26 2021. 

He said there were no further movements in the system, but he found over 30 stamps after November 26 2021, up to and including January 4 2023. But only one movement was captured on December 2 2022. He said the system presently indicates that Nangy was not within the borders of South Africa. 

Seanego, in his supplementary affidavit said Mozambique submitted a formal request for Nangy’s extradition on February 2.

He said it was easy to explain why Nangy, according to his explanation, was able to move freely between South Africa and Mozambique because he was not placed on a 'red notice' by Interpol, which is imposed when the whereabouts of a suspect are not known. 

“It is only where Interpol has issued a red notice against a person, that international travel by that ‘wanted person’ would result in his/her arrest. In this case, Mozambique has not requested Interpol to issue a red notice against the applicant (Nangy). Any arrest warrant against the applicant would accordingly not be visible to the border control officials,” said Seanego. 

“The requesting state (Mozambique) would have requested such a red notice for the applicant had the whereabouts of the applicant not been known to the requesting state.”

He said in Nangy’s case, Mozambique was aware he was living in South Africa, hence not applying for a red notice. 

He argued that Nangy remained a flight risk due to his US visa which expires in March 2023. 

Through his enquiries to his Mozambican counterparts regarding Nangy’s pending case in his birth country, he had ascertained Nangy had a pending case of aggravated robbery and possession of a prohibited firearm. 

“However the court file cannot be located to provide further information on the same. The criminal record has however revealed that Nangy has a previous conviction for breach of trust for which he was convicted and sentenced in absentia,” he said. 

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