Ex-Telkom CEO Sipho Maseko convicted over 85 unfiled tax returns at his five firms

Sipho Maseko, Telkom's group CEO from April 2013 to December 2021, was convicted at Palm Ridge Magistrate's Court on Friday October 9, 2026 of failing to submit tax returns for five of his companies: One Fountain Properties, One Fountain Industries, One Fountain Capital, Afrifund Advisory Services and Afrifund Investments. The 85 counts — failures to submit PAYE, VAT and Corporate Income Tax returns — fell under section 234(2)(d) of the Tax Administration Act, and the NPA said he was convicted in his representative capacity as director. Maseko paid an R85,000 fine on the companies' behalf.

The case sits under Project Honey Badger, a government initiative led by the NPA, SARS and the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation that prosecutes individuals and entities failing their statutory tax obligations. The joint investigation into Maseko's dealings began after a case was opened in September 2025, with no tip-off received, according to the NPA. State Advocate Athenkosi Mancoba argued that the failure to submit returns hampers SARS in administering tax and collecting revenue. The companies have since submitted all their outstanding returns, enabling SARS to assess them.

The conviction landed on a businessman still accumulating directorships. Under Maseko's eight-year tenure Telkom grew into South Africa's third-largest operator on about R20 billion of revenue and migrated from ADSL to fibre; after leaving he took board seats at Shoprite and KAP, held a stake in MultiChoice's South African operations through Afrifund Investments, and in August 2026 was appointed to the board of Motus, the country's largest vehicle dealership group. Businessman Sonwabo Mtshazo, a director in the five companies alongside Maseko, was named in the same proceedings.

Conviction on 85 counts at Palm Ridge Magistrate's Court and an R85,000 fine paid on behalf of the five companies.

The five companies failed to submit more than 85 tax returns over several years — PAYE, VAT and corporate income tax — the filings SARS needs to assess them.

Prosecutors argued the non-submission hampers SARS in fulfilling its mandate to administer tax effectively and collect revenue.

Section 234(2)(d) of the Tax Administration Act makes non-submission a criminal offence, and as director Maseko carried that liability in a representative capacity for each company.

Project Honey Badger deliberately targets individuals and entities that fail their statutory tax obligations, and a case opened in September 2025 put the five firms in its path.

Tax filings are per company and per year: five private firms can quietly rack up 85 counts, and for a prominent director the conviction outweighs the fine.

The five companies have since submitted all outstanding returns, allowing SARS to assess them, and Maseko paid the R85,000 fine after the conviction. The NPA welcomed the outcome as reinforcing the obligation to file returns. For Maseko personally the conviction lands on a busy board calendar: he remained a non-executive director at Shoprite and KAP, kept his Afrifund stake in MultiChoice's local operations, and had joined Motus's board in August 2026, a month before the conviction. The NPA did not describe any separate penalty against co-director Sonwabo Mtshazo.