Markus Jooste received huge profits from Steinhoff land deal a decade ago
Markus Jooste, who quit as head of Steinhoff International Holdings in December amid an accounting scandal, oversaw a complex series of transactions in which decisions made by the South African retailer benefited him personally, company filings show. In a set of property deals reviewed by Bloomberg, companies linked to Jooste and Steinhoff associates profited by hundreds of millions of rand between 2002 and 2007. Steinhoff said it has handed information about Jooste to the police and the former CEO hasn’t spoken publicly since quitting the company, despite being summoned to appear before parliament twice.
His lawyer Callie Albertyn said at the time that Jooste wouldn’t appear because any statements he made could undermine his right to a fair trial at a later date because he believed he would probably be prosecuted. With Jooste at the helm, Steinhoff began buying Johannesburg-based logistics firm Unitrans in 2000. Two years later Unitrans, with Jooste and Steinhoff’s current ac...
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