Facelift for mansion owned by ‘Wonga coup’ plotter Thatcher and Gupta state capture fugitives – The Mail & Guardian

Downhill: Mark Thatcher, of ‘Wonga Coup’ notoriety, sold the property to the Gupta family who then fled rather than face state capture charges.

The Gupta mansion in Upper Constantia, Cape Town, bought earlier this year by a European business person, is undergoing extensive renovations. 

After the Guptas fled South Africa, the property was neglected, with cracks appearing in the wall paint and holes in the roof that caused substantial water damage.

The buyer, Hugh Vincent Cooke, is restoring his new primary residence — which has seven bedrooms, six bathrooms, two garages, a guardhouse and a one-bedroom cottage — to its former glory, and is also revamping the damaged and outdated interior. The monthly rates are R11  577. 

After navigating two court interdicts against the sale, Cooke then waited a full year for the transfer of the 8  105m2 property. 

The Gupta company Islandsite Investments 180 (Pty) owned the Upper Constantia property before it was seized by the National Prosecution Authority in 2021 with combined assets worth more than R500  million. The Guptas bought the property from Mark Thatcher for R17  million in 2005. 

In 2004, Thatcher was found guilty of his involvement in the “Wonga Coup”, a failed attempt to overthrow the Equatorial Guinea government. Thatcher, the son of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, admitted that he provided financial backing for the operation and was fined and given a suspended jail sentence in South Africa. 

Islandsite Investments was owned by Atul and Rajesh Gupta, along with their wives, Arti and Chetali. In one of the company’s audited group financial statements, signed off by KPMG, it is stated that the company operates as an investment holding firm, with investments in properties and various companies. In 2018, the company entered voluntary business rescue.

Ironically, the opening letter of the document states, “Directors are also responsible for the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.” This letter was signed by Atul and his wife, Chetali.

Islandsite Investments was one of the companies the Guptas used to transfer millions of rands through inter-company loans. At that time, business rescue practitioners questioned the fleeting money transfers, but no valid answers were provided.

Before the property was sold, Islandsite Investment submitted an application to the Free State High Court on 20 April 2023. The application was represented by Ronica Ragavan, a director involved with various Gupta companies holding more than R100  million of assets. Some of the assets mentioned in court filings by the Asset Forfeiture Unit included 73 properties and cars such as a Porsche Cayenne, a Lamborghini and a Rolls Royce.

The applicants submitted their application because they believed the property was listed for sale at an undervalued price. According to the deeds office, Islandsite Investments purchased the property for R17  million, while the municipal valuation of the property in 2018 was R22.2  million.

Islandsite Investments was subject to a Prevention of Organised Crime Act (Poca) order that appointed a curator to oversee its assets, including the property located in Upper Constantia.

The interdict was brought against Cooke and the business rescue practitioners, Kurt Knoop and Johan Kloppers, who were appointed under the Act. 

Despite multiple communications from the applicants, the curator of the Upper Constantia property proceeded with the sale without the applicants’ consent. 

Islandsite Investments was in voluntary business rescue, which seems counter-productive to what the business rescue practitioners were trying to achieve. 

The applicants subsequently sought an urgent interdict to prevent the transfer of the property to Cooke. They argued that they had not been consulted and that the sale process was flawed. The property was “under offer” for one year during the court proceedings. The final interdict was lifted in December 2023, and the property was transferred in January this year. The home sold for the full asking price of R20   million.

Interestingly, an 8  971m2 property on the same street (Dawn Avenue, Bel Ombre) sold for R54  million and transferred at a similar time.

The Upper Constantia area has been a hotspot for property lately, according to Arnold Maritz, co-principal agent for Lew Geffen Sotheby’s International Realty in Cape Town’s southern suburbs and False Bay. This year, 63 properties have been sold and out of those properties, 21 had a price tag of more than R20  million.

Richard Hardie, the Hardie Property agent who sold the Gupta mansion to Cooke, described the condition of the property as “unfortunate”, which was reflected in the sale price. 

“You couldn’t live in it; the damp was off the charts, doors were missing and there were no working lights or electricity,” he said. 

He clarified that the Guptas did not leave the property in this state of disrepair. Instead, it had been left unattended for seven years, exposed to harsh winter seasons. Such old houses generally require more tender loving care than modern ones, and the Upper Constantia mansion had not been maintained.

Several Gupta companies have been placed under business rescue over the past few years, resulting in the sale of many of the family’s properties. One of these companies, Confident Concept (Pty) Ltd, included the Guptas’ Saxonwold house located at 18 Avonwold Road in Johannesburg. 

On 19 November 2019, this property was auctioned off by Park Village Auctions for R2.6 million. The deeds office said Confident Concept (Pty) Ltd acquired the home for R3.2  million.

Several government ministers often visited the 1  199m2 property. 

Another Gupta property that was also seized was their mansion at 5  Saxonwold Drive. According to the deeds office, the 4  207m2 property is still registered under Confident Concept. The Guptas bought the property for R14  million in 2004. Neighbours have filed numerous complaints regarding the property, citing neglect and the presence of illegal structures. Security personnel on site have been instructed not to speak to the media.

The Guptas also owned properties in uMhlanga, KwaZulu-Natal, and commercial property in Midrand, Gauteng. 

All proceeds from the sale of Gupta properties were given to the business rescue practitioners, who then distributed the funds to the appropriate creditors. 

Meanwhile, the directors of Islandsite Investments, Atul and Rajesh Gupta, are fugitives on Interpol’s wanted list.

Ask Ash is a new column that examines South Africa’s property, architecture and living spaces. Continue the conversation with her on email ([email protected]) and X (@askashbroker).