A former director of Amaanat Investment Holdings (AIH), accused of orchestrating an alleged multi-million-rand fraud, theft and money laundering scheme, was granted R200 000 bail when he made his first appearance in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 1 July.
Hussun Abdul Khalek Omar (68), of Camps Bay, Cape Town, appeared before the Durban Magistrate Court facing 22 counts of fraud, alternatively theft, as well as seven counts of money laundering. Accounting firm Kreston KZN, cited as the second accused and represented by Omar, also faces charges in the matter.
The State did not oppose Omar’s Schedule 5 bail application, which was brought by his defence attorney, by way of an affidavit. In granting bail, the court noted that Omar has no previous convictions and as part of his strict bail conditions, Omar was ordered to; pay R200 000 bail; report to a police station every Monday and Thursday; surrender all travel documents, including his passport and USA Green Card, to the investigating officer; not travel outside South Africa; not seek citizenship in any foreign country; and not to interfere with State witnesses in any way.
According to the charge sheet, investigated by Colonel Misra, the allegations stem from Omar’s tenure as a director of AIH, where prosecutors allege he abused his position by unlawfully diverting company funds for his own benefit, the benefit of his family and entities linked to him.
The State alleges Omar falsely represented to the AIH board that he had authority to authorise payments from the company’s bank account to MOP Agency and subsequently to Kreston. Prosecutors claim the transactions were portrayed as legitimate accounting expenses when they were allegedly unauthorised.
The indictment further alleges Omar failed to disclose his personal financial interests to the board despite his fiduciary obligations under the Companies Act to act in the company’s best interests. According to the State, these alleged misrepresentations induced the board to approve financial statements without interrogating the transactions, causing actual or potential prejudice to AIH amounting to millions of rand.
Investigators further allege that company funds were used to acquire luxury assets and properties linked to Omar and his family. Among the allegations are claims that AIH money was allegedly used to purchase: property through the FHO Trust, whose trustees include Omar’s wife, son and daughter; a Porsche motor vehicle allegedly bought for his daughter; and gold, silver and Krugerrand coins.
The State further alleged that Omar transferred money from AIH into the MOP Agency account before moving the funds to third parties in an effort to conceal their source and ultimately use them to purchase properties for himself and members of his family.
The money laundering charges allege Omar knowingly engaged in transactions intended to disguise the nature, ownership, source and movement of proceeds allegedly derived from fraud or theft. The prosecutors further contended that, while serving as a director with sole signing powers over AIH’s bank account, Omar transferred company funds without the knowledge or approval of the board before the money was channelled through various entities to acquire assets. The indictment also alleged that Omar breached his fiduciary duties by acting in his own interests and those of his relatives and associated companies, rather than in the interests of AIH.
The fraud and alternative theft charges, excluding several specified counts, fall under the minimum sentencing provisions because the amounts allegedly involved exceed R500 000. If convicted, Omar could face a minimum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment, unless substantial and compelling circumstances are found. The money laundering charges carry a maximum penalty of a fine of up to R100 million or imprisonment for up to 30 years, or both.
The matter was postponed to 5 August 2026 for the State to provide discovery. Abdullah Sujee, group CEO of AIH, was contacted for comment, however he declined to comment at this stage.
