SanParks CEO Fundisile Mketeni accused of Sexual Assault and Assault

[Klipspringer]

https://citizen.co.za/news/south-africa ... lt-claims/

SANParks CEO ‘disheartened’ by ‘dishonest’ sexual assault claims
Mketeni took special leave last month, after charges laid against him by a woman employed at Shalati Lodge in Skukuza.

South African National Parks (SANParks) chief executive officer Fundisile Mketeni has expressed disappointment at sexual assault allegations levelled against him, with his legal team now pursuing extortion charges against the complainant.

Last month, Mketeni took special leave following the allegations, laid against him by a 35-year-old woman employed at Shalati Lodge in Skukuza, Kruger National Park.

In a statement released by Mketeni’s legal team last week, Advocate Adriana Bevilacqua said police were currently investigating allegations against the woman “for allegedly targeting and blackmailing high-profile individuals in exchange for financial rewards”.

The case against Mketeni was postponed on 2 June, with the magistrate saying all cases must be amalgamated.

Mketeni’s legal team said in the statement it was “unfortunate that such attempts to discredit his impeccable character has surfaced at this particular time, when he is tirelessly working to implement transformation in the environmental sector”.

Lawyers also said Mketeni was “disheartened” at the complainant’s “level of dishonesty”, and that he “cannot comprehend why she would have targeted him in the manner in which she did.”

Mketeni being a father to three teenage daughters added to him being “saddened by the spurious and perfidious allegations”.

City Press reported in May that the woman who accused Mketeni of sexual assault feared for her life, and was afraid to return to work.

Three other individuals were accused alongside Mketeni, two of which are also employed by SANParks. They have since been released on bail.

The woman told the publication the fellow SANParks employees assisted Mketeni in assaulting her when she rejected his sexual advances.

The case is expected to be heard in Skukuza on 23 June.

[Richprins]

So is she targeting the other 3 employees for financial gain too? Sounds like a tall order...

I wonder who is paying Fundisile's legal team? I hope it is not SANParks/taxpayer money.

[Lisbeth]

If someone falsely accused me of sexual assault, I would not be disappointed nor sad, I'd be furious.

Why did it take so long before he /his lawyers made a declaration

[RogerFraser]

https://www.sowetanlive.co.za/news/sout ... um=twitter

SanParks boss Mketeni ready to return to work after flop of sexual assault charge



South African National Parks CEO Fundisile Mketeni has expressed wishes to return to work after he was acquitted of assault charges.
Image: Werner Hills

The South African National Parks chief executive Fundisile Mketeni says he is ready to return to work after he was acquitted of assault and sexual assault charges on Monday.

This was confirmed by Mpumalanga's National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Monica Nyuswa, who said Mketeni and his colleague Danny Thwala were now free men.
"[The matter] was finalised today, both accused [were] found not guilty and discharged," she said. The case was before the Bushbuckridge magistrate's court in Mpumalanga.

Mketeni, SanParks risk manager Thwala, and Xola Mkefa, the state-owned entity's head of social economic transformation, took special leave from work in May after they were arrested for assault and sexual assault.

Charges against Mkefa were dropped in July.

Mketeni told SowetanLIVE: "I feel so relieved, though with a bit of anger in me because of what I went through. Although I am willing to forgive and forget, there is a huge challenge of rebuilding my name I made over 33 years."

He said "the people who conspired" against him disturbed his term work programme at SanParks.

"This is a huge organisation and people like these disrupted [my work] programme," he said.

Thwala said: "I am married with two children and the matter was emotionally draining [to] me and my family. I am happy for the support my wife gave me as she was always with me in court."

Mketeni's attorney Macbeth Ncongwane and advocate Adriana Bevilacquq told Sowetan the allegations left Mketeni's family traumatised and he reserved his rights for further legal action to restore his dignity.

[Lisbeth]

They must have been in a very cold place

If he was discharged in July, why is he talking only now

[Richprins]

The article is a bit wrong. He was not acquitted of the sexual charges, they were dropped by the prosecuting authority...

Article:
The charges were laid against Mketeni by a 35-year-old woman employed at Shalati Lodge in Skukuza in the Kruger National Park.

In June, he expressed “disappointment” at the allegations, with his legal team accusing the woman who laid the charges of blackmailing high-profile individuals “in exchange for financial rewards”.

City Press reported in May that the woman who accused Mketeni of sexual assault feared for her life and was afraid to return to work.

MacBeth Attorneys confirmed to The Citizen that Mketeni was “ready to head back to work” after his voluntary special leave.

His family has been left “traumatised” after the allegations, Advocate Adriana Bevilacqua said, adding that “staff morale was affected”.

He thanked his wife and children for supporting him throughout this time.
Blackmail allegations

One of Mketeni’s legal representatives from MacBeth Attorneys, Mandla MacBeth Ncongwane, told The Citizen in detail last month of the alleged plot to blackmail the SANParks CEO.

It was alleged that Mketeni was at the Shalati Hotel in the Kruger Park for work-related matters when the woman who laid the sexual assault charges began “harassing” him. She was reportedly in a drunken state.

As he was leaving the hotel to go to his guest house, people reportedly began verbally attacking him, saying he was the reason a doctor at the Skukuza rest camp was “removed”.

When Mketeni got to his guest house, his legal representative explained the woman who laid the charges against him was also there, still drunk and now barefoot. Ncongwane said Mketeni offered the woman a pair of flip flops and a jacket, and went to bed.

She then allegedly came to his room with wine. Mketeni then pushed the woman out of his room. The woman then disappeared, while allegedly trying to jump across an electric fence. She was said to have fallen on her head and injured her left shoulder.

A manager from Shalati Lodge was called to fetch her and was told Mketeni had assaulted her.

When the woman was taken to a doctor, no injuries were noted to acquire a J88 – a legal document completed by a medical doctor or nurse documenting any injuries sustained.

She was also allegedly not transported to the doctor with a police officer present, and Ncongwane said no calls to police were made, nor was any right of reply received.

https://amp.citizen.co.za/news/south-af ... t-charges/

[Lisbeth]

That's why they are not mentioning the counterpart

How come? Something like her story against his story and no real proof?

[RogerFraser]

Acquitted SANParks CEO still not at work

https://www.news24.com/citypress/news/a ... _V51QDfxS0



The CEO of SANParks, Fundisile Mketeni (55), has been frozen out at work, despite his acquittal on sexual harassment and assault charges in October.

Mketeni took voluntary leave immediately after a 35-year-old woman who is an employee of Kruger Shalati Lodge, a concessionaire with the Kruger National Park, made the sexual harassment allegations against him. She included the organisation’s head of socioeconomic transformation Xola Mkefe (53) and risk manager Danny Thwala (29) in the assault charges.

The Bushbuckridge Magistrates’ Court found the trio not guilty of the crimes, but they have yet to return to work.

Mketeni’s lawyer, Macbeth Ncongwane, said the charges were part of a conspiracy against his client for bringing about transformation in the “white-dominated” Kruger national Park.

Ncongwane said:

My client has been found not guilty, but when he asks if he can go back to work, the board threatens him with more charges. He’s transformed SANParks and some people don’t like it. For example, he’s said that only SANParks employees should live in the Kruger national Park, and there are those who don’t like it because their extended families have been enjoying their stay in the park free of charge.
Ncongwane said the SANParks board had appointed Werksmans Attorneys to investigate Mketeni after the allegations. He added that the board’s intention of frustrating his client became clear when Mketeni, as an ex-officio member of the board, was suspended in absentia.

Ncongwane alleged that the former board had gone “rogue” and it seemed it had now been replaced by another “rogue” board, which was continuing where the former one had left off.
“They’ll call witnesses discredited by a court of law in their internal investigation. We know that the whole thing is a ploy because there’s been a conspiracy against the CEO anyway,” he said.

SANParks spokesperson Reynold Thakhuli said the judicial process was independent and SANParks was not involved in it.

Thakhuli said:

Disciplinary action is in progress against the SANParks staff involved in the potential contravention of organisational policies and procedures. This is taking place with due regard to the confidentiality of all concerned. Once the disciplinary process has been concluded, SANParks will be able to update the public on its outcomes.

He would not be drawn into giving more details about the internal investigation, such as specifying the misconduct charges Mketeni faced.

The woman laid the criminal charges in May. She said she had been introduced to Mketeni by a friend at a restaurant and they had gone to his house, where they had all drunk wine.

She claimed that Mketeni had begun touching her inappropriately and then assaulted her when she rejected his sexual advances.

She alleged that Mkefe and Thwala – who were also present – had assisted their boss and assaulted her after she ran out of Mketeni’s bedroom.

After this incident, the woman said she feared for her life. She also alleged that her daughter could no longer attend school, which was situated within the park, because she was too afraid to drive her there.

[Richprins]

Curiouser and curiouser!

Macbeth is protesting too much by pulling the race card, of all things....Kruger is not white-dominated, unless the source of his client's salary is inferred?

[Lisbeth]

No comment!