Cape Town — As South Africa was coming to terms with the death of fraud accused Markus Jooste, a former Steinhoff colleague appeared in court on Friday, 22 March.
The National Prosecuting Authority confirmed today that warrants of arrest for Jooste and Stéhan Grobler, the former head of Steinhoff’s legal department, had been issued on Wednesday, in relation to what has been coined as South Africa’s biggest accounting scandal.
Just In:
The Hawks and the NPA have confirmed that warrants of arrest for Markus Jooste and Stephanus Johannes Grobler regarding #Steinhoff fraud were issued on Wednesday and the duo were expected to hand themselves over to the police and appear in court today. pic.twitter.com/680w83iGUP
— Scapegoat (@AndiMakinana) March 22, 2024
Jooste, 63, was to have appeared in court as well, but he was declared dead in a Hermanus hospital on Thursday after sustaining a gunshot wound to the head. Reports said Jooste shot himself on the rocks below the Kwaaiwater coastal path in Hermanus, where he had a home.
A video showing the site of his death was posted on social media platform X. Blood was still pooled on the rocks, with a discarded surgical glove lying nearby. Passersby stopped at a distance to view the site, which appeared to be guarded by private security.
His death came only a day after the Financial Sector Conduct Authority on Wednesday fined Jooste R475 million for publishing false and misleading annual financial statements and annual reports for the 2014 to 2016 years and the 2017 half-year.
New24 reports that Grobler, who was director on a number of Steinhoff boards, appeared in the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Friday for a bail hearing.
He is facing charges of fraud, racketeering activities and contravening the Financial Markets Act.
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Picture: Picture: X/@Am_Blujay
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