“Married to the Mob: The diamond boer and the honeytrap” – Louis Lieberman - Part 4

https://mg.co.za/article/2015-04-16-married-to-the-mob-the-diamond-boer-and-the-honeytrap/
16 Apr 2015

“You know, being Afrikaans, we are not that close to family,” Lieben¬berg said. “I liked the fact they were very supportive of me going through my divorce. We were always having dinner and lunch together and it really felt like a family.”

Liebenberg accepted the offer, transferring all of his assets to the Ferrantes. Almost immediately, he employed three family members in key positions.

Although he kept his role as chief executive of all the diamond companies, he was now technically working for the Ferrante family.

And the deal was not limited to the companies: “They convinced me I must take all my animals, my cattle, boats, equipment, all of it, and put in Pina’s name,” he said, “and I did that.”

With the assets now Pina’s name, and Liebenberg’s wife heading to the courts, the family decided to liquidate Wealth4u, transferring its assets and rights to concession 10 into African Dune Ltd, owned outright by Pina.

Investors who poured more than R100-million into Wealth4U were concerned that the assets of a multimillion-rand company, including the valuable concession 10, were now the property of African Dune, officially bought on auction by Pina for the rock-bottom price of slightly more than R2-million.