Cape Town - Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola has dismissed suggestions that the National prosecuting Authority (NPA) delayed by three months requests for photos and fingerprints of the Gupta brothers from the United Arab Emirates.
The Gupta brothers, Rajesh and Atul, were arrested in the United Arab Emirates in June after Interpol issued red notices.
The pair were held in connection with charges related to procurement fraud involving R24.9 million paid between November 2011 and April 2012 by the Free State Department of Agriculture to a company called Nulane Investments 204.
The brothers, who now face extradition in order to face the law in South Africa, have been wanted in South Africa for their alleged role in state capture, including fraud and money laundering.
DA MP Glynnis Breytenbach asked the reasons for the delay of approximately three months by the NPA in responding to a request by the UAE for photographs and fingerprints of the Guptas.
“There was no delay in providing the requested fingerprints and photographs,” Lamola said.
According to Lamola, a request for fingerprints and photos was received on March 2 from Interpol Pretoria a day after a request was received from Abu Dhabi.
He said the fingerprints were requested from the Criminal Record Centre on March 3 and they were received the following day.
Lamola said the fingerprints were forwarded six days later to Interpol Pretoria and then sent to Abu Dhabi on March 14.
“Photographs were in fact sent with the Red Notices in June 2021 but sent again in March 2022.
Lamola’s response comes almost two weeks after he and NPA head Shamila Batohi briefed the media on high profile extradition and mutual legal assistance matters.
He said at the time Atul and Rajesh Gupta were accused persons in two criminal matters and had already been charged and warrants issued against them in one of the matters.
In July 2022, a request was received from the NPA for the extradition of the Guptas to stand trial on charges of fraud, money laundering and corruption.
The request was made in accordance with the extradition treaty between South Africa and the UAE as well as the UN Convention Against Corruption.
“We can confirm that the extradition request has been duly submitted to the UAE central authority,” Lamola said.
The NPA previously said it had full confidence in its team of prosecutors working on the legal aspects of the brothers’ extradition process.
NPA spokesperson Mthunzi Mhaga has said extradition processes were complex and each had its peculiar dynamics, depending on the country involved.
“Expert prosecutors in the NPA have been dealing with extradition cases for many years. The NPA leadership has full confidence in its team of experienced and highly skilled prosecutors working on the legal aspects of the Gupta extradition process,” Mhaga said.
Cape Times