SARS Wins Court Order To Sell Shauwn Mkhize’s 5 Sandown Properties — R125.9M Tax Debt

In the midst of a whopping R125.9 million unpaid tax dispute, a judge in the High Court on Monday allowed the South African Revenue Service to put five luxury homes registered in Shauwn “Mam’Khize” Mkhize’s name on the market. Each of the Sandown, Johannesburg locations represents substantial accumulated wealth, and now it is time to compel liquidation. The money will be kept in a trust account until the case is finally resolved.

After years of trying to collect what SARS claims are outstanding obligations from the entrepreneur and reality TV celebrity, it launched the urgent application. The entire sum owing is far more than the combined worth of the five residences, which, according to the court-appointed assessors, is around R35 million. An instant sale would inflict irreparable financial loss on their client, Mkhize, according to his legal team, who disputed the proceedings, claiming that settlement talks were underway.

Following the completion of the necessary statutory notifications, the revenue authority has promised to go on with the public auction plans. Outside the Johannesburg High Court, spokeswoman Siphithi Sibeko assured media that SARS will execute all outstanding responsibilities fairly but firmly. The agency did not provide any details on whether or if other assets were still being investigated, apart from the Sandown portfolio.

After rising to fame as the head of the KwaZulu-Natal construction tycoon Zikhulise Group, Mkhize branched out into the entertainment industry and real estate investing. The Hawks’ 2021 raid on her KwaMashu property, during which they confiscated papers and cash, brought her financial problems into sharp focus. This is one of the biggest SARS enforcement actions against a private person in Gauteng this decade; it all started with that inquiry, which uncovered tax violations.

Two Sandown residents who live in close proximity to the impacted houses reported seeing suspicious cars parked outside their homes on Tuesday morning, with the people inside taking pictures of the outside and inside of the buildings via the open gates. An anonymous elderly lady informed reporters that she had seen workmen removing potted plants from a front porch, delicately placing the clay pots into a bakkie, and then drove away without providing any more details.

We still don’t know whether the R35 million from the sale will go toward paying down the R125.9 million debt or if it will just lead to further seizures of Mkhize’s other assets. The status of an appeal has not been announced by her lawyers. Who will be held financially responsible for this reckoning? That is the issue that remains hanging over the trust funds and gavels.

https://x.com/southafricandly/status/2114790468001386611

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