SARS to challenge Master’s ruling on its Kebble claim

A Business Times report says the Master’s ruling was handed down in November last year during an in camera hearing in Cape Town. It says SARS’ claim was rejected on the grounds that the taxman cannot claim tax on stolen money. Kebble stole more than R2bn from his former mining companies, JCI and Randgold & Exploration. ‘SARS’ intention is to take the Master’s decision on review in the next two months,’ says SARS spokesperson Adrian Lackay. In the review papers, SARS claims that the Master’s Office acted beyond its powers when rejecting its claim against Kebble’s estate. SARS also accused Christa Vermaak, Assistant Master of the High Court who presided over the hearings, for acting in a ‘biased’ manner. Vermaak is standing by her ruling. In her ruling, she lashed out at SARS for submitting ‘incorrect and inconsistent’ information about Kebble’s tax affairs. She found that SARS had failed to do a proper tax assessment of Kebble’s financial affairs. Full Business Times report