Feared suspected crime boss Ralph Stanfield has been portrayed as a violent man who intimidates his victims with death threats and has a hitman at his disposal.
This emerged during Stanfield's bail application in the Cape Town magistrate's court this week. The state alleges his wife, Nicole Johnson, worked alongside him. Investigating officer Lt-Col Christiaan van Renen's affidavit describes an incident where Stanfield and his alleged accomplices, when Johnson was present, forcibly entered a security complex, assaulted a victim and stole a car.
Stanfield is also accused of leading “The Firm gang”. Stanfield, 44, and Johnson, 36, were arrested at their R7.58m home in Constantia, Cape Town, on September 29.
They were arrested together with Johannes Abrahams, 48, and Denver Booysen, 43, for theft of a BMW worth more than R326,000, and robbing a victim of a cellphone. Stanfield and Johnson are also facing fraud charges.
On Monday, an attempted murder charge was added after the stolen car's driver was shot. Stanfield's alleged hitman, Jose Brandt, joined the group in the dock.
Stanfield is facing multiple charges in various courts, including unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition in the Wynberg magistrate's court after an unlicensed firearm was found in his bedroom, and motor vehicle theft and intimidation in Bishop Lavis.
The theft of the BMW and the cellphone, captured on camera, could prove detrimental to Stanfield and Johnson. According to Van Renen, the victim's girlfriend owned the BMW, and the victim had been employed by Stanfield. On November 22, the victim received a warning not to go to work “because Ralph wants to kill him”.
The victim had just parked the BMW at a security complex in Milnerton when he was informed that Stanfield had seized the car. Stanfield allegedly took the victim's father to his Bishop Lavis fuel station, questioning him about his son's whereabouts, and accusing him of theft.
Johnson informed Stanfield that she had tracked the BMW to Brooklyn, Milnerton. Stanfield then took the father, Johannes, and his security personnel to a few houses.
“At one house, they assaulted a person because Ralph thought that the said person was hiding the complainant,” the affidavit reads.
They then went to the security complex. The victim's father remembered Stanfield and his group assaulting a man at the complex, seizing his cellphone. A tow truck arrived and loaded the vehicle. Three months later, Stanfield reportedly sent Johannes to bring the victim's father and his other son to his fuel station.
“Ralph said that the complainant must kill [two people] within the next two weeks or he and his son’s [family] must move out of Valhalla Park. Ralph told the father he can die because he is already old,” the affidavit reads.
The security supervisor at the complex observed one of the men with Stanfield carrying two firearms, one on each hip. He mentioned that Johnson informed him that the car was stolen and that the same person had also taken R1m from them.
The BMW was found in Valhalla Park in June. Last month, the driver from whom the car was seized was allegedly shot and injured by Brandt. All five are currently on trial along with 19 others in the Khayelitsha priority court, which is held at the Cape Town regional court, facing a total of 113 charges, including being “members of a criminal gang”.
They were arrested for fraud related to firearm licences involving a scheme at the central firearms registry in Pretoria. The case is scheduled to return to court on December 13.
Van Renen objected to the group's release on bail, citing the severe injuries sustained by the victim they allegedly attempted to kill.
“The injuries suffered by the victim were so severe that he was hospitalised for five days, and we had to assist to have the victim hospitalised under an alias for his protection,” the affidavit reads.
Van Renen said hospital staff feared for their safety and released the victim before a scheduled operation.
“He had to undergo a reconstruction of the lower arm in which a metal plate had to be inserted. Besides, the injuries suffered, there were seven bullet holes found in the vehicle driven by the victim,” the affidavit reads.
He said the victim knew that Stanfield used Brandt as “a hitman in the Firm Gang”. Stanfield has been overseas on 31 occasions since 2010, while Johnson has travelled overseas 24 times since 2011.
“[Johnson] has travelled to different countries and it would depend on which country he may flee to in order to determine whether the authorities could successfully have [her] extradited to South Africa,” the affidavit reads.
The bail application hearing continues on Tuesday.
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