Publication: Sapa Issued: Cape Town Date: 2006-10-20 Reporter: Sapa Reporter:

Arms Deal Man Raided by UK Cops

 

Publication 

Sapa

Issued

Cape Town
Date 2006-10-20

Reporter

Sapa

 

The London home and the offices of an arms broker linked to a supplier in South Africa's multibillion-rand arms deal have been raided by Britain's Serious Fraud Office, it was reported on Thursday.

The Guardian said the raids were part of a probe into corruption allegations against Britain's biggest military hardware exporter, BAE Systems.

The newspaper said John Bredenkamp, who it named as BAE's agent in Southern Africa, was understood to have received large sums in confidential "commission payments" for various deals.

However it also quoted "sources close to Bredenkamp" as denying that he played any role in the South African arms deal, and that the search warrant related to a Bredenkamp-controlled company with which BAE had dealings.

It was reported in 2003 -- also by the Guardian -- that BAE, which is Britain's biggest weapons manufacturer, paid millions of pounds in secret commissions to obtain a huge UK taxpayer-backed contract to sell Hawk jets to South Africa.

Britain's department of trade and industry admitted it did not know who was to receive the money, despite providing loan guarantees for the deal.

South Africa's fighter jet procurement plan, shared between BAE and its partner Saab, is worth $2,2-billion.

BAE has so far delivered 10 Hawk jet trainer aircraft to the South African Air Force, and will supply seven more in the next 10 months. A total of 24 have been ordered.

The South African-born Bredenkamp, a multimillionaire who began his career in the tobacco business, was once captain of the Rhodesian rugby team, and reportedly held a key finance post in Ian Smith's army.

He developed a close relationship to Zimbabwe's post-liberation government, and according to United Nations reports, his companies have been supplying its defence force with material including aircraft parts.

With acknowledgement to Sapa.