Maumela fails in bid to stop sale of Ferrari linked to Tembisa Hospital probe

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) on Monday welcomed the judgment of the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria, dismissing an urgent application brought by Morgan Maumela and the trustees of the MHR Maumela Family Trust.

The application sought to prevent the sale of a Ferrari SF90 Stradale that is subject to a preservation order.

The luxury vehicle forms part of assets preserved in connection with the SIU’s investigation into alleged corruption and maladministration at Tembisa Hospital, where approximately R2 billion is alleged to have been looted.

Maumela and the trust approached the High Court in an effort to stop the sale while related legal proceedings continue.

However, the court found that the Tribunal’s order authorising the sale of the vehicle was an interim order and was therefore not automatically suspended by the appeal process.

The court further found that Maumela and the trust had failed to establish a clear right to stop the sale, failed to demonstrate reasonable prospects of success on appeal and had not shown that they would suffer irreparable harm if the sale proceeded.

The court also noted that the value of the Ferrari would remain protected, as the proceeds from its sale would be preserved in an interest-bearing trust account pending the outcome of the main proceedings.

The SIU said the judgment reinforces the use of preservation and civil recovery mechanisms to safeguard assets linked to corruption investigations and prevent their value from being eroded by storage, insurance and maintenance costs.

The trustees of the MHR Maumela Family Trust were ordered to pay the costs of the application.