Thoshan Panday acquitted on 26 charges in R7.3m SARS case, fined on single VAT count

Durban businessman Thoshan Panday has been acquitted on 26 charges in a case alleging he defrauded the South African Revenue Service of R7.3 million, and was convicted on a single count for failing to register for VAT, the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption said.

Judgment and penalty

The Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC), the National Prosecuting Authority unit that brought the prosecution, said Panday was acquitted on 26 charges and convicted on one charge for failure to register for VAT. He was given a fine of R5,000, which was wholly suspended for five years.

“He was acquitted on 26 charges and convicted on one charge for failure to register for VAT,” IDAC spokesperson Henry Mamothame said. “He was thus given a fine of R5,000, wholly suspended for five years.”

The directorate said it would study the judgment before deciding its next step.

Background to the R7.3m allegation

Panday was arrested on 5 September 2024 and charged with fraud and contraventions of the Tax Administration Act over allegations that he understated income earned from accommodation contracts with the police during the 2010 Soccer World Cup, resulting in the claimed loss to SARS of R7.3 million.

Defence response

Panday’s attorney, Kershnie Govender, told the Daily News the court had found Panday did not intend to deceive or defraud SARS. Govender said the evidence showed income was understated in some tax filings and overstated in others.

“The court had found Panday did not intend to deceive or defraud Sars,” Govender said.

Panday told the Daily News he was happy with the outcome and said the charges had been driven by a vendetta against him.

Separate World Cup case still pending

Panday remains facing a separate set of charges connected to accommodation his companies supplied to the police for the 2010 World Cup. He was arrested in that matter in October 2020, and the state told the Durban Magistrate’s Court at his bail hearing that the alleged fraud in that case was worth R47 million, to his benefit.

His eight co-accused in the World Cup matter include former KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lieutenant General Mmamonye Ngobeni, former colonel Navin Madhoe and former captain Ashwin Narainpershad, as well as Panday’s mother, wife, sister, brother-in-law and former personal assistant. The state alleges the offences were committed between March 2009 and April 2010.

Pre-trial dispute

On 18 September Panday and his co-accused asked the Durban High Court to strike the World Cup case off the roll, arguing that the state’s delays in handing over information needed for their defence had become unreasonable. Judgment in that application was reserved.