Two of the Gupta brothers who have been charged with fraud and money laundering in South Africa have been arrested under an Interpol red notice in Dubai.
In one of the most prominent breakthroughs in South Africa’s attempt to bring perpetrators of state capture to justice, brothers Atul and Rajesh Gupta have been arrested in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The two were a prominent part of the Gupta family business empire, having migrated from India to South Africa in 1993. After having started a successful computer business, they soon diversified into multiple industries, including the founding of a media organization. However, the family name has become inseparable from allegations of corruption and theft from South African state-owned entities such as the state power provider Eskom, as well as other interests in mining and rail, as well as allegations of political interference as a result of their reported close relationship with several political actors, including South Africa’s former President Jacob Zuma.
The arrest of the two brothers in Dubai was confirmed by the South African Ministry of Justice in a short statement this evening, with talks ongoing between multiple law enforcement agencies on the way forward.
A joint agreement on extradition and legal co-operation was signed between the UAE and South Africa in 2018, and it remains to be seen if this mechanism will be implemented to extradite the two brothers to South Africa.
This is a developing story.