With cross‑examination set to continue in April, questions continue to swirl around the liquidation of Arthur Kaplan Jewellers and the dramatic 2023 heist.

The defence alleges an inside job involving gold, diamonds and watches worth an estimated R38m that were removed from multiple stores in Sandton City and Eastgate. 

The matter returned to the Palmridge Specialised Commercial Crimes Court last week, where the case was postponed to April 2026.

The Citizen reports that the four accused, former director Hoosein Mohammed and former employees Azhar Ismail, Ridwan Mansoor and Ammarah Ismail, allegedly looted the stores in 2023 after the company went into liquidation.

CCTV footage showed the haul being loaded into shopping trolleys and backpacks.

During last week’s cross‑examination of liquidator Laila Motala, the court heard allegations of irregularities in both her appointment and her father’s involvement, former disgraced liquidator Enver Motala.

According to the defence, the liquidation process was tainted by historical disputes, personal relationships and procedural anomalies.

The court heard that both Motala and her father had engaged former Pamodzi Group directors Faizel and Solly Bhana to procure loans for Arthur Kaplan, despite the Bhanas allegedly being proven creditors of the estate.

Faizel and Solly worked alongside Motala and were previously identified as key drivers in the collapse of two gold mines owned by the Pamodzi Group during a 2009 sale to BEE company Aurora Empowerment Systems (AES).

AES included former President Jacob Zuma’s son, Khulubuse Zuma, and Zuma’s long-time lawyer, Michael Hulley.

Defence Advocate Muhammad Vally told the court that while public debate has intensified, the full picture will only emerge when cross‑examination resumes. 

The Citizen notes that Arthur Kaplan Jewellers was placed under urgent provisional liquidation in late 2022 by unknown Durban businesswoman Verushka Jagganauth, who claimed the company owed her nearly R2m.

She has since disappeared.

Motala was appointed shortly thereafter as provisional liquidator.

However, testimony last week suggested that her appointment – a process that ordinarily takes up to seven days – was completed within a single day, raising questions about procedural fairness and transparency. 

Defence counsel questioned the appointment of Motala and her consultants, citing a commercial dispute involving her father more than two decades ago. 

Full report in The Citizen