The curator who seized assets owned by Shauwn Mpisane and her husband said he had been fulfilling a court order.
|||Durban - The court-appointed curator who seized nine luxury cars and properties owned by businesswoman Shauwn Mpisane and her husband, S’bu, two weeks ago said in papers filed in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Friday that he had been fulfilling a court order.
He was responding to an application by the couple to have the court order overturned so they could get their cars back.
Trevor White, represented by advocate Hoosen Gani, said the order was to restrain assets valued at R70 million from the couple.
The cars were taken as their properties did not come to that amount.
The Mpisanes said the storage fees for their luxury vehicles, which included a Rolls-Royce Phantom and a Ferrari, were too high and the facilities where they were being kept were not secure.
They also asked that White be removed as the curator, claiming his conduct was unprofessional, that he had harassed Shauwn and had leaked information to the media.
White said Ian Wyles Auctioneers had secured premises for the vehicles’ storage, which were temporary.
“It would only be necessary for them to be stored until the finalisation of the criminal proceedings. If this does transpire, I will take steps to lease and suitably secure premises where they can be stored,” he said.
The monthly storage for the luxury vehicles would be R11 000 and R7 500 for a security guard.
White said that when he was leaving the Mpisane residence on the day the assets were being restrained, reporters had asked if the vehicles had been removed under the restraint order, which he confirmed.
“I dispute there was anything untoward about this as the restraint order and the removal of the vehicles were at that stage matters in the public domain,” he said.
White added that he was respectful to the couple throughout the proceedings and would continue to be so.
Akbar Ally, who is employed by the Asset Forfeiture Unit, backed White’s conduct and denied that he had acted unreasonably.
“His conduct and the position he took in this matter is no different from how he has conducted himself in any other matter,” said Ally.
A date has yet to be set for the matter to be heard.
The Mercury