POLITICS

CIPRO: Three more company hijackings confirmed

ContinuitySA, Trademore and the D & T Trust bring number of known victims to 21

JOHANNESBURG - Three more companies have joined the list of confirmed cases of company hijackings in 2010. They are ContinuitySA, Trademore and the D and T Trust. This brings the total number of recorded cases - excluding the unrelated Kalahari Resources matters - to twenty one (see below).

All three companies had their legitimate directors fraudulently removed on the database of the Companies and Intellectual Property Registration Office (CIPRO). In the case of ContinuitySA the fraudsters unsuccessfully attempted to divert a substantial South African Revenue Service tax refund that had fallen due.

CIPRO records indicate that ContinuitySA first had their directors fraudulently removed in April 2010. The company restored them in May. However, they then had to fight off two further efforts to replace their directors in early and mid-June.

Trademore and the D and T Trust were both only alerted in the past week to the fact that their legitimate directors had been replaced.

The D and T Trust used to be owned by Deloitte and Touche until it was taken independent through a management buyout. As Moneyweb reported earlier another Deloitte company - Deloitte Consulting - also fell victim to company hijacking this year.

On April 14 2010 all of the company's directors - numbering over thirty - were ‘resigned' on the CIPRO system and replaced by one ‘Dinake Charles Leshaba', aged 30. Deloitte Consulting eventually went to court to get an order that CIPRO correct their records. This was eventually done in October.

These frauds all use the CM29 -change of directors - function on the CIPRO system to remove legitimate directors and replace them with fraudulent ones. The new director will then attempt to open a bank account in the legitimate company's name. This is usually, but not always, for the purpose of diverting tax refunds.

Table: CIPRO hijacking victims list 2010 (Dec 7 2010)

1

Gap Distributors

2

AFC Ltd

3

Vanern Investments

4

Nestle Purina Petcare

5

A Million Up Investments 48

6

CHM Vuwani Computer Solutions (KZN)

7

Aobakwe Louw Properties

8

Taquanta Asset Managers

9

Vereeniging Foundaries

10

Pretoria Ooginstituut

11

Columbia Pharmaceuticals

12

Bombardier Transportation UK Limited

13

Isithimela Rail Services

14

Natmed

15

South African Valve and Tube Industry

16

MJS Trading

17

OEP Office Equipment Products

18

ContinuitySA

19

Deloitte Consulting

20

D and T Trust

21

Trademore

22

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23

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24

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