The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has obtained a preservation order from the Special Tribunal to freeze a residential property in Hesteapark, Pretoria, linked to the late actor Presley Chweneyagae, his spouse, and several other respondents in a National Lotteries Commission (NLC) corruption case.
Presley died on 27 May 2025 at the age of 40. His family said he had died from natural causes after experiencing breathing problems.
Family spokesperson Mzwakhe Sigudla said that paramedics had attended to him, but he “couldn’t make it”.
Chweneyagae, who was born in 1984 in South Africa’s North-West Province, got his big international break after starring in the 2005 film Tsotsi, which earned the country its first Oscar for best foreign language film.
The order, by the SIU was handed down by Judge M Victor on 18 December 2025, is directed against Charlaine Christinah Chweneyagae, in her personal capacity and as Executrix of her late husband’s estate, as well as Mr Alfred Muzwakhe Sigudla, the Southern African Youth Movement NPO, Domestic Baboon (Pty) Ltd, and others.
“The order prohibits any sale, transfer, lease, encumbrance, or disposal of a home in Pretoria, Gauteng, pending the finalisation of civil proceedings to be instituted by the SIU within 60 court days,” said the SIU.
“The property is alleged to have been purchased with approximately R889,000 diverted from a R15 million NLC grant meant for youth arts programmes.”
The SIU’s investigation found that the grant was approved for the Southern African Youth Movement NPO — represented by Sigudla — and subsequently channelled through Domestic Baboon (Pty) Ltd, a company solely owned by the late Presley Chweneyagae, to acquire the private residence.
“The primary mission of the SIU is to recover proceeds from beneficiaries of NLC grant funding who are involved in unlawful activities, thereby restoring the State’s financial losses,” SIU sad.
Authorised by President Cyril Ramaphosa through Proclamation R32 of 2020, the SIU is dedicated to investigating allegations of corruption and maladministration within the NLC and to recovering financial losses incurred by the State.
The order from the Special Tribunal represents an important step in the SIU’s ongoing efforts to combat corruption and ensure accountability and transparency in the management of public funds.
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