Three weeks since Markus Jooste's death, and several questions still up in air
While other Steinhoff executives were charged in Germany, it remains to be seen who else South African officials will close in on.
Picture: AFP
JOHANNESBURG - Exactly three weeks since disgraced Steinhoff CEO Markus Jooste died by suicide, a number of questions are still up in the air.
Jooste was found with what’s believed to have been a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head near his Hermanus home.
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His death came a day after the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) imposed a R475 million fine against Jooste for fraud related to Steinhoff.
Since the company’s crash in 2017, Jooste lost an array of assets, faced several financial sector investigations, and also had criminal charges in Germany.
In addition to the colossal financial loss, Jooste's reputation as one of the most promising CEOs in the country took a massive knock.
While some believe Jooste paid the ultimate price for his part in the rot at the retail multinational, executives he was accused of colluding with are now left to face the music alone - almost 10 were named in a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report.
The full 3,000-page report has never seen the light of day, with Steinhoff sealing most of it, and only releasing a watered-down summary of the findings.
The company’s head of legal, Stephanus Grobler, was among those implicated.
He’s already been charged with fraud, racketeering, and the contravention of the Financial Markets Act.
While other executives were charged in Germany, it remains to be seen who else South African officials will close in on.
Meanwhile, those in the know remain tight-lipped about when and where Jooste was laid to rest.