Montana denies defrauding state, buying properties with Prasa money

Montana, who was CEO at the rail agency between 2010 and 2015, owned four properties that are in question.

One of the allegations is that he bought properties worth R36 million in a year. 

He worked with a former Pretoria lawyer Riaan van der Walt.

Van der Walt owned a company called Precise Trade and Investment and was also representing Siyangena Technologies.

Siyangena Technologies was awarded an R4.5 billion contract by Prasa in 2011 to upgrade its security system which has been set aside by the High Court in Pretoria.

The original value of the contract was R517 million but was extended and the value shot up to R4.5 billion.

Montana has told the commission he is accused of buying properties with Prasa monies because of his association with Van der Walt. 

He said his partnership with Van der Walt was business-related and meant to invest in property and make money. 

Montana also told the commission he informed former Prasa board chairperson Popo Molefe about the nature of his relationship with Van Der Walt. 

"The Parkwood property bought by Riaan, it was bought after I had one a lot of work and you can see that the proceeds of the sale of that property went into the purchasing of my Hurlingham property and my other Waterkloof property which I still own it today," he told the commission of inquiry into state capture on Monday.

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"Chair I worked with Riaan, he is such a man of integrity, it saddened me to see a man who played a major role in his church be destroyed by the story on property. He is a great legal mind and I know he was a committed South African, an Afrikaner who was committed to this country and was involved in business.”

Montana said the commission's investigator Clint Oellermann used information obtained from private investigator Paul O' Sullivan. 

"The commission and Oellermann got the story from O' Sullivan who said but Montana was involved with Riaan. I never denied that chair. Then he says it means Riaan's properties are Montana's properties. I bought other properties that are registered in my name, why would properties bought by Precise Trade be Montana's properties? That is what they are trying to say, they want to say Riaan bought me my property." 

He told the commission that O' Sullivan is the mastermind behind all these allegations and even gave information to investigative journalist Pieter-Louis Myburgh. 

Montana said after he left Prasa he was accused of being the leader of a criminal syndicate that defrauded the state of R3.6 billion.

"You think I would be here in South Africa chair? R3.6 billion? I would probably be sitting on a Yacht somewhere enjoying the money. I asked why the Hawks does not charge me and they said if he passes on some of that money to them and they would help me. I think they wanted R500 million. My response was that I would be very happy to work with them, but they should identify where the money is stashed, and if they showed me, they will get more than they asked for.”

Montana said he later found out the people who accused him of defrauding the state worked with O' Sullivan.