PAY BACK THE MONEY: ‘I’m not Rockefeller’: Angelo Agrizzi says he has no money to repay R1.66bn

Speaking to Daily Maverick from Italy on Monday, 2 November, former Bosasa COO Angelo Agrizzi questioned how the State expected to recover a R1.66-billion confiscation order imposed by the Gauteng Division of the High Court in Pretoria, arguing that the amount was far beyond anything he had personally received.“What do you think about the R1.6-billion? Do you think I got it?” he asked.The court ordered Agrizzi to pay R1,666,582,825.73, with interest from 29 October 2026 until final payment.Agrizzi maintained that he was a Bosasa employee, not a director or shareholder, and questioned why he was being held liable for such a substantial amount.“I was never subpoenaed. I went on my own to the Zondo Commission and gave testimony on my own, trying to help the country,” he said.He said he had been “brutally honest” at the commission and questioned what had become of the information he provided.Former Bosasa COO Angelo Agrizzi said on Monday, 2 November 2026, that he was brutally honest at the Zondo Commission. (Photo: Felix Dlangamandla/Gallo Images / Netwerk24) Agrizzi insisted he could not meet the court-ordered payment.“It is easy to make a judgment on R1.6-billion, but in order to collect that money, I simply don’t have it,” he said.Agrizzi said he had moved to Italy to live with his family because he could not afford to live elsewhere. He also cited his ill health and reliance on oxygen.“I’m living here with my family. I can’t afford to live anywhere else. I’m on oxygen, and I’m sick,” he said.He concluded: “My name is not Rockefeller. I’m the other fella.”Agrizzi intends to appealIn a media statement released on Monday, Agrizzi said he respected the court, but intended to apply for leave to appeal.“I am applying for leave to appeal against the judgment, as the law entitles me to, and the order is subject to that appeal. I do not dispute my conviction. I pleaded guilty, and I gave evidence before the Zondo Commission,” he said.In November 2025, after he entered into a plea and sentence agreement with the State, Agrizzi pleaded guilty to three counts of corruption and one count of money laundering arising from his role at Bosasa.Agrizzi was accused, alongside former Department of Correctional Services (DCS) commissioner Linda Mti, former Correctional Services chief financial officer Patrick Gillingham and former Bosasa chief financial officer Andries van Tonder, of fraud and corruption to the tune of R1.8-billion.Agrizzi’s appeal argument centres on how much money he personally received, rather than the value of government contracts awarded to Bosasa.He contends that the State’s own heads of argument described the R1.66-billion as the value of contracts awarded to Bosasa by the Department of Correctional Services (DCS).He cited figures which he said demonstrated the disparity: R1.43-million as the value of the offences for which he was convicted, R7.118-million as the State’s stated value of his criminal activities and R26.75-million as the value of his realisable property, as assessed by the curator.He argued that the confiscation order was disproportionate to the money and assets he had received.Agrizzi also disputed the finding that he had concealed assets, including property in Italy. He said the State had known about his property because it had previously been held as security for his bail.He said the high court ordered on 7 August 2024 that it be replaced by R1.5-million held for the benefit of the National Director of Public Prosecutions.He claimed that an Italian investigation into the funds had been closed in 2022, while the Bosasa liquidators and SARS had separate claims against him.What the court foundThe judgment by Judge Mokhine Mosopa, delivered on 29 October, rejected Agrizzi’s argument that his liability should be restricted to the money he personally pocketed.The court found that he had acted in common purpose with other Bosasa executives in a deeply entrenched corruption network used to secure government contracts worth about R2.37-billion over more than two decades.About R75.7-million in bribes were paid between 2000 and 2016 to secure government business.The court also found that Agrizzi had failed to make full and frank disclosure of his financial affairs and properties, including assets in Italy.It rejected his argument that he could not be held liable for Bosasa’s wider criminal activities, finding that his salary, bonuses, investments and pension benefits could be regarded as benefits derived from unlawful activities.National Director of Public Prosecutions advocate Andy Mothibi welcomed the judgment.NPA spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said the State had argued that Agrizzi’s participation in the joint criminal enterprise justified attributing its proceeds to him, rather than limiting the inquiry to amounts he personally retained.The court accepted the central thrust of the State’s argument, the NPA said.NPA national spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago. (Photo: Kopano Tlape / GCIS) Kganyago said the ruling reinforced the principle that the criminal justice system must pursue not only convictions and sentences, but also the financial benefits derived from crime.From whistleblower to convicted offenderBosasa came into sharp public focus during Agrizzi’s testimony at the Zondo Commission. His evidence exposed an extensive system of bribery and political patronage allegedly used to secure and maintain government contracts.The scandal also implicated politically connected figures, including former ANC MP Vincent Smith, who was sentenced to seven years’ direct imprisonment in March 2026 after entering into a plea agreement over his involvement in the corruption scandal.Agrizzi’s prosecution was partly delayed by his deteriorating health. In February 2024, three specialists at Weskoppies Psychiatric Hospital found him fit to stand trial, despite his physical condition and need for permanent oxygen.Agrizzi now argues that while he came forward to expose corruption, politically connected people implicated in the scandal have escaped accountability.He said senior politically connected people identified by the Zondo Commission had not been charged, while some former Bosasa executives implicated in its findings remained employed by companies that took over Bosasa’s operations.The NPA regards the confiscation ruling as an important step towards financial accountability.The central question now is whether Agrizzi will secure leave to appeal and whether the State will ultimately recover the R1.66-billion ordered by the court. DM