The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has welcomed the bail conditions set out for former Bosasa COO Angelo Agrizzi. They include the disclosure of all his assets to authorities as well as handing over the deed to his villa in Italy.
Agrizzi was earlier granted bail by the High Court in Johannesburg.
In the video below, Johannesburg High Court hands down judgment:
Agrizzi is facing a corruption charge which relates to the payments made to former African National Congress MP Vincent Smith who is also on bail for fraud and corruption.
He is still in hospital under police guard after suffering a heart attack.
One of the conditions that Judge Ratha Mokgoatlheng set is that Agrizzi should check in with police once a week once he’s discharged from hospital.
NPA Spokesperson Sindisiwe Twala says, “Now that this particular court has taken the decision to overrule the initial court’s decision, we are not at all worried because we have that guarantees that we’ve sought from the onset.”
She adds: “We now have a guarantee that his villa in Italy is now going to be handed over to us in terms of a title deed, passports must be handed over by the 3rd of November, by the 10th of November that title deed as well as various other disclosures about his property and that of his common law wife will be disclosed. Failure to disclose all of this and if we and various other persons find out that there’s stuff he has not disclosed unfortunately his bail will be revoked.”
Below is the full interview with Twala:
Title deeds
Agrizzi’s lawyer Daniel Witz says they agreed to ensure his bail by handing over the title deeds to his villa in Italy amounting to at least R17-million.
Witz says the court order will now be taken to the hospital where all the guards will be removed and Agrizzi unshackled from his hospital bed.
“The state requested some form of security in order to secure his bail and after negotiations the property in Italy what is the value of the property was put up as security as a bail amount. At the time that it was purchased and the current rand value and Agrizzi will give a guarantee that should he evade his trial or should his bail be revoked the NPA will inherit the house. It was purchased for give-or-take R17 million.”
Witz says, “We’ll take the stamped court order to the prison authorities they will confirm it and they will call the guards back and he will be released on bail and unshackled from the bed.”
