A ruthless battle for access to Mozambique's offshore gas fields is believed to be behind a "plot" to have South African maritime businessman Andre Hanekom arrested on terrorism charges.
Hanekom, 61, who owns a slipway and maritime logistics company in the country's gas-rich northern region of Cabo Delgado, was arrested in August last year after gunmen wearing camouflage uniforms and balaclavas tried to drive him off the road. The men, one of whom shot him in the arm and stomach, turned out to be police officers.
He was briefly hospitalised and officers initially claimed they were holding him for his own safety after rescuing him from kidnappers linked to the extremist group Ahlu Sunnah Wa-Jama, which allegedly wants Cabo Delgado as a separatist state.
However, in October he appeared in court, with authorities claiming Hanekom - fondly known as baba mzungu (white father) among locals - was linked to the organisation. They said they had confiscated weapons and logistical supplies from his home destined for the organisation.
Despite being granted bail on October 9 by magistrate Mariza Saiete, who said he had been illegally arrested and that it was not clear he had committed the crimes he was accused of, Hanekom has still not been released. He is due to appear in court again next week.
"I have told my children that if Andre and I are killed they must know that in the face of the lies and death threats we always stood for the truth," Hanekom's emotional wife, Francis, told the Sunday Times this week, adding that "dangerous" people were trying to get rid of those who stood in their way.
Some believe Hanekom's shooting is a botched assassination after he refused to sell his business, Palma Marine, based in the coastal town of Palma, near the Tanzanian border.
He and his two business partners secured lucrative contracts with multinational energy companies vying for access to the gas fields. The company is said to have the best deep-water access to the port in Palma.
International exploration companies are scrambling over gas fields in mineral-rich Cabo Delgado, which has been gripped by violence over the past two years. According to news agency AFP, more than 100 people, including women, children and police officers, have been murdered since 2017 and villages, police stations and mosques have been destroyed.
Mozambique authorities claim Islamic extremists are responsible for the violence, but regional security experts have cast doubts on the claims and also say it is unlikely Hanekom is involved in terrorism or the attacks.
Hotelier Lynn Lury, who operates the Amarula Hotel in Palma, in whose car park Hanekom was shot, said she doubted he was a terrorist. "I fear this was a badly planned attempt on his life. He has the best deep-water access to the port because he built a slipway on his own ... his partners wanted to sell the property and he didn't."
Court documents detail a fallout between Hanekom, who has lived in Mozambique for 26 years, and his business partners, US citizen Neil Summer and Mozambique national Francisco Soares.
The documents, including affidavits, reveal that days before Hanekom's arrest Soares allegedly called his wife, telling her he had information about Hanekom that would have his "name dirty" and Hanekom should contact him to avoid such a situation.
Francis said: "They [Summer and Soares] initiated all this trouble. They wanted to get rid of Andre and sell his property for their own benefit."
She alleged the pair conspired against her husband and used rogue elements within the Mozambique police. However, Summer told the Sunday Times his business relationship with Hanekom had soured because of Hanekom's unscrupulous practices.
"In a meeting [the Hanekoms spoke] in Afrikaans and discussed how much Francis would get of my next investment, forgetting that I'm South African-born. I stopped sending funding as it was being misdirected to their pockets and began to insist on accountability for every dollar," he said.
He denied conspiring against Hanekom, insisting he was only acting to protect his investment. "My aim is to show poor management for the benefit of all shareholders as I feel that funds were misdirected to the Hanekoms to enrich themselves. Ultimately, I want to displace Hanekom from his management position and emplace an independent manager and sound accounting procedures."
Soares did not responded to questions.
Francis dismissed Summer's allegations. "He abandoned the company when oil prices slumped [and] never completed his part of the investment. Andre did all humanly possible to maintain and keep the company going. He never took his salary for five years," she said.
Hanekom's attorney, Momade Abubakar, said prosecutors had yet to give him details of the charges.
Jasmine Opperman, Africa director for the Terrorism, Research & Analysis Consortium, said it was unlikely Hanekom was involved with an extremist group.
"In his wheeling and dealings he could have interacted with the wrong people at the wrong time, but most definitely not with an intent to support an extremist ideology or destabilise Cabo Delgado," Opperman said.
International security analyst Andre Roux said the threat of the militant movement Mozambican National Resistance to Mozambique's security was far greater than terrorism. He said the potential abuse of security legislation occurred in many countries.
African security analyst Koffi Kouakou of the Wits School of Governance said there was "no actual evidence" of terrorism in Mozambique. He said that with economic development from the gas boom not flowing into rural areas, Mozambique's opposition party was pressuring the government, "especially as these areas are their strongholds. This creates instability, which is compounded by government security raids on villages, which are perceived as declarations of war."
SA department of international relations & co-operation spokesperson Ndivhuwo Mabaya said they were monitoring Hanekom's court proceedings...