…3 Malawi companies under probe
Controlverisal self-styled Prophet Uebert Angel has been stripped of his diplomatic status.
This comes in the wake of an explosive documentary into gold smuggling and money laundering by the Al Jazeera Undercover Unit.
The Gold Mafia series by the Al Jazeera have ripped into the heart of money laundering and mineral smuggling in Southern Africa and is covering Malawi, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Zambia.
Three companies in Malawi, one in cigarette manufacturing, another registered to a religious personality and a mining firm have all been linked to Simon Rudland of Gold Leaf and Prophet Angel.
The three companies in Malawi are now officially part of the investigations by South African authorities, and The Investigator Magazine has sent questions to their representatives. We will update the story.
Angel boasted on camera that he is cleans and launders money on behalf of political elites in excess of US$200 million. His associate Pastor Rikki also told the undercover journalists that they need to pay US$200 million to access Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
In the first episode of the documentary, Uebert Angel unwittingly told undercover Al Jazeera journalists posing as Chinese criminals, that he can use his diplomatic status to carry large volumes of illicit funds into Zimbabwe for them.
President Mnangagwa appointed Uebert Angel ambassador-at-large and a presidential envoy in March 2021.
Speaking to Al Jazeera a former parliamentarian and former Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Monetary Policy Committee member, Eddie Cross, confirmed that Angel has now been stripped of his diplomatic status.
Cross added that there is a possibility Angel will also face jail time as a result of the revelations in the Al Jazeera documentary.
“Well, I can tell you that the so-called Pastor. The guy who claimed to be a Christian Pastor has been stripped of his diplomatic passport. In fact, he has had his passport removed from him and the President has stripped him of all status. He might in fact face jail time,” Eddie Cross told Al Jazeera.
Cross revealed that one of Zimbabwe’s prominent white gold dealers fled the country with his family in the wake of the damning Al Jazeera documentary. At the time of writing, this publication could not confirm the identity of the trader although unconfirmed reports suggest it is Ewan Macmillian who featured prominently in the docu-series.
Eddie Cross revealed that action will likely be taken against other individuals featured in the Al Jazeera documentary.
“I know that one of the big white gold traders has fled the country with his family. I would imagine other elements inside that story against which action will be taken,” Cross said.
Some of Angels close associates in Malawi are already facing money laundering charges elsewhere.
