Klopse grootbaas Ridwaan “Pot” Stemmet has been arrested on suspicion of being in possession of stolen dop.
Police say Stemmet, 60, was nabbed after a truck was hijacked, and the stolen, 36 pallets of sparkling wine worth over R1 million, was traced to his business, The Penn sports bar, in Crete Road, Wetton.
The Pennsylvanians minstrels founder spent the weekend in a jail cell at Lansdowne SAPS and is expected to make an appearance in court today.
The chairman of the former Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Association and two others were arrested on Friday afternoon.
His family tells the Daily Voice they are shocked by the arrest and tried to bail him out, but failed.
His 50-year-old sister, who asked not to be named, says: “Other criminals are treated better, they get bail. And it’s not like he’s going to flee the country.
“Murderers and child rapists get bail. But they (the police) want to treat him like this.”
She adds that Stemmet had just had a heart operation and is very sick.
“The cops have no sympathy even though the doctor told them about his triple bypass.
“We went to the police station to hand over medical documents to them, but they refused to take the papers and they didn’t want to give him tablets.
“We had to fight to get his tablets into the police station, he was treated like a hardened criminal.
“An ambulance had to be called in, because his stitches came loose.”
Police spokesperson Noloyiso Rwexana confirms the arrests and says it all started with the hijacking of a truck on Thursday at 3pm in Halt Road, Elsies River.
“The truck was loaded with 36 pallets with sparkling wine valued over R1m rand.
“The tracking unit of the truck was jammed and could not be traced, the truck however it was later recovered in Lansdowne Road abandoned with the whole freight stolen.”
She says on Friday, detectives made a breakthrough when they established that the truck stopped at an address in Crete Road.
“They conducted observations at the business premises, and saw boxes of sparkling wine loaded into a truck.”
She says cops followed this truck and when searched, found 320 boxes of sparkling wine on it.
“Two suspects, aged 22 and 38, were arrested for possession of presumed stolen property.
She says cops then raided The Penn in Crete Road, and 717 boxes of sparkling wine were found.
“A 60-year-old suspect was arrested on the premises for the possession of presumed stolen property.”
All the suspects are expected to appear in the Wynberg Magistrates’ Court today.
Stemmet previously served time for armed robbery and has been arrested several times on gun and drug-related charges.