Illustration: Lisa Nelson
Convicted rapist and murderer Thabo Bester, who escaped prison on May 3, 2022, has run a scam construction company called “Arum Properties” with celebrity doctor Nandipha Magudumana.
The pair convinced several people to pay millions of rands for construction projects, but never delivered the goods. An Arum Properties client told GroundUp that after signing in and paying the deposit, he began to realize something was wrong.
We have a recording of a call between Bester and Arum Properties’ client from two weeks ago. Bester and Magudumana had run away from their rented house in Sandton.
We spoke to several people who have met with Arum Properties in the past year. Bester was introduced to them, most often by Magudumana himself, and then by the name “TK Nkwana”. He signed legal documents using his driver’s license and KTP documents with KTP numbers that were not in the Home Affairs records.
Someone told GroundUp that he met with “TK” in July 2022. He was offered to fly to Cape Town and take pictures of a house allegedly renovated by Arum Properties. But he knew something was wrong and refused.
“TK” uses social media accounts associated with Magudumana, including Arum Properties and I Media, to reach out to models or people with large social media followers. At least one person was asked to travel to Cape Town at their own expense to audition for a Netflix show called “Hot Property Chick”.
“Women in Property”
In August 2022, Arum Properties held a “Women in Property” brunch at the Magudumana rental house in Hyde Park. The event was attended by several Johannesburg businesswomen.
“In celebration of women’s month, Arum Properties wants to treat you, a pioneer in the property industry to an exquisite brunch and all properties,” the invitation reads.
Attendees were offered the services of Arum Properties, which quoted up to R3 million below other companies in the industry for the construction of luxury homes. But clients signed with Arum Properties say they haven’t received their money.
“TK” takes care of the day-to-day operations, while Magudumana is busy in training. Meetings with “TK” often take place during the day in public places. Clients do not know that they are dealing with Thabo Bester.
The client told GroundUp that the administrative process at the company was slow. Line items will be added to the invoice without negotiation and there will be an indefinite delay. The actual construction is outsourced to subcontractors and very little work is done.
According to the people we work with, “Kindergarten” is hard to work with and hot-headed, especially when clients ask for clarity on budgets and schedules. They are also difficult to catch because they keep using different mobile phone numbers.
GroundUp has seen the signed contract between Arum Properties and the client. The contract mentions “Arum Properties (Pty) Ltd”, but this company is not in the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) database. “Arum Holdings (Pty) Ltd” does not exist and Magudumana is the sole director.
The website for Arum Properties is down, but an archived copy from 2021 shows a portfolio of construction projects. These images have been copied from elsewhere on the internet.
Magudumana and Bester’s mysterious relationship
After GroundUp reported that Bester was still alive, Magudumana and Bester fled their rented home in Sandton. The Sunday Times reported that the couple had been paying rent of R40,000 a month, but had not paid it.
The property manager told GroundUp that the couple also rents the house next door, which is being renovated by Arum Properties. The owner of the house has approved the renovation and it is believed that the house will become Magudumana’s new health clinic.
Last Monday, armed men came to the mansion to collect the belongings left by the couple.
According to the Sunday Times, Bester lived a life of luxury after his escape from prison. A watch worth R1.5 million was found on the bedside table after Bester and Magudumana vacated the house, the Sunday Times reported.
There are also indications that Magudumana was involved in Bester’s 21st Century Media scam, which he escaped from prison in 2018.
Earlier this month, GroundUp published an article about how Bester tricked people into believing he was Tom Motsepe, the chairman of 21st Century Media, which was made to look like a subsidiary of 21st Century Fox.
Following the report, the sole director of 21st Century Media (Pty) Ltd, Phumudzo Thenga, issued a statement claiming that he had been defrauded by Bester and Magudumana. Thenga said he had lost money in the business and that he had been duped into making payments to Magudumana’s company, Optimum Medical Holding Group.
Arum Holdings (Pty) Ltd was registered as a company in 2017. While Bester was still in prison, Arum Holdings made payments to the inmate’s bank account, according to payment receipts submitted to the Pretoria High Court.
Magudumana had approached the High Court in May 2022 after it was reported that Bester had died in his cell. He had collected the body found in the cell two days after the fire and had taken it to a mortuary in Soweto, but it had been seized by the police for further investigation. In court he asked for the body to be returned.
In her court affidavit, Magudumana said she was Bester’s common law wife and provided an affidavit from her father as proof of the lobola negotiations.
But Magudumana, according to Home Affairs records, was married to Dr Mkhuseli Magudumana at the time. The law does not allow people to enter into a customary law marriage if they are already in a civil law marriage. (Perhaps the Internal Affairs records have not been updated to reflect the divorce, but we are not sure of this.)
GroundUp asked the Department of Home Affairs, the Gauteng Department of Transport and the South African Police Service to respond to questions about Bester’s dealings after his escape from prison, but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
This article was first published by GroundUp.