A Johannesburg man has taken the owner of a car dealership to court, alleging that he was swindled out of more than R200 000.
John Foster bought two kombis for R137 000 from Iqbal Khan in November 2014, at the then O&J Car Sales, which was based in Claremont.
Mr Forster claims that he only had the vehicles for a month when he was asked by Mr Khan to return the vehicles for a full refund, as they were listed as stolen.
When he took the vehicles back, he also sold a third kombi to
Mr Khan, he said, for R69 000.
However, Mr Foster claims Mr Khan only paid him back R10 000.
When asked why he took so long to pursue a legal route, Mr Foster said he had no money to pursue a civil case, and was met with various challenges until he opened a case in Johannesburg in December last year. The case was transferred to Claremont SAPS.
Said Mr Foster: “I was very angry and took the vehicles to his shop where he took the keys and promised to refund my money. He offered to pay me R69 000 for my third vehicle, but to date, he only paid me R10 000.
“In March 2015, he contacted me while I was in Johannesburg, stating he will settle the outstanding amount. I left for Cape Town and to my surprise, he gave me three different documents, stating I sold the vehicles to him for R90 000, which I never ever did, as the signatures and identity number on those documents were not even mine.”
Mr Khan confirmed that he took the two vehicles back, and bought the third vehicle from Mr Foster, but denied that he still owes him money.
In an email, Mr Khan attached handwritten notes on a company letterheard, which he said proves that he paid Mr Foster in full.
“Every payment received from myself to Mr Foster, was signed and witnessed. A final payment was also made into Mr Foster’s bank account. “Furthermore, Mr Foster bought two VW kombis from me in order to start a business, but because he could not drive himself, he hired drivers, who then wrecked his vehicles.
“He then came back to me and sold the two vehicles, plus one of his own, because his business was running at a loss. We then entered into a deal. Since then, Mr Foster has sent me letters of demand, via three different attorneys. He also got the police to call me, but when I produced the proof of payment, they stood down. At this stage, he is busy with Legal Aid SA, which I have also responded to,” Mr Khan said.
Claremont SAPS spokesperson, Sergeant Lindile Dubeni, confirmed that a case of theft was opened and that it was forwarded to the State Prosecutor in Wynberg for a decision.
Cordelia Robertson, the Western and Northern Cape Regional Operations Executive at Legal Aid SA, also confirmed that they are representing Mr Foster.
“We confirm that Legal Aid SA, through our Johannesburg Justice Centre, is acting on behalf of the plaintiff (Mr Foster) in this matter. The Cape Town Justice Centre is on record as the correspondent firm of attorneys as the matter was issued out of the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court. Pleadings are not yet closed and should the matter go to trial, it will be heard in the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court.
“Legal Aid SA is constitutionally mandated to provide legal representation and advice at no cost to those who cannot afford it. Legal Aid SA’s role in this matter is therefore to fulfil our mandate as per section 35 of the Constitution, which impels us to ensure that every person who is arrested, detained or accused has a right to a fair trial, and further, to ensure that the rights of the accused are not violated,” Ms Robertson said.
