Shamin "Chippy" Shaik has quietly returned to the country after fleeing to Australia two years ago following allegations that he received a R30million arms deal related bribe.

A source in the arms industry, who spoke to Sowetan on condition of anonymity, said Shaik's return shows that "the NPA was getting ready to drop all its investigations into the arms deal".

University of the Western Cape constitutional law professor Pierre de Vos says the NPA's credibility will be destroyed if they fail to investigate Shaik, who allegedly received a bribe of R30million from German warship maker Thyssen Krupp in 1998 while he was head of procurement at the Department of Defence.

Thyssen Krupp later won the contract to supply the South African Navy with four warships.

After the German press published evidence that he had allegedly been bribed, Shaik fled to Australia.

But now he is living in South Africa. He was pictured at a celebration for Jacob Zuma on Tuesday arm in arm with Durban's deputy mayor Logie Naidoo and other local businessmen.

Advocate Paul Hoffman, director of the Institute for Accountability, says "Shaik needs to be arrested because otherwise he might just disappear again".

"Getting to the bottom of the corruption in the arms deal will be difficult without his help".

Shaik refused to answer questions about whether his return to South Africa meant he was off the hook.


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