Popular influencer Simphiwe ‘Simz’ Ngema confirmed that not only did she have a budding business relationship with Thabo Bester, but she also paid him a visit in prison.
Simz Ngema on why she visited Thabo Bester in prison
Ngema released a statement on her Instagram page, on Wednesday, clearing the air around swirling rumours about high-profile celebrities whose names appear on prison records as Bester’s visitors at Mangaung Correctional Centre, where he served life for fraud, murder and two counts of rape.
Last week, News24 journalist Karyn Maughan sent social media into an uproar when she hinted at knowing the name of a high-profile celebrity who had close ties with Bester when he was in prison.
Bizarrely, however, keyboard detectives linked Maughan’s claims to Shauwn Mamkhize, who was quick to shoot down the speculation.
On Wednesday, as murmurs grew of her name appearing on prison records, Ngema came forward with a statement confirming that she, indeed, had a relationship with Bester who, at the time, had “introduced himself as TK Motsepe.”
“He seemed well-connected and was able to organise meetings and big events which I and many other public figures were booked for,” Ngema explained.
The influencer added that her visit to Mangaung prison, recorded on 5 April 2018, was for the sole purpose of demanding answers since she allegedly was “never paid for some of the events that I was booked for by 21st Century.”
“It was a difficult time in my life and he owed me money,” Ngema wrote.
Ngema insisted that she’s cooperating with investigators and more importantly, she is “not the person that went there on a regular basis nor was [she] the last person to visit before his escape.”
“This was five years go and I have supporting documents at my disposal that prove I had only visited on one occasion. Dated: 05 April 2018,” she stressed.
Ngema called on the media to stop “vilifying his victims and using us as a tool for distraction because we also want answers.”
It remains unknown, at this juncture, who else visited Bester in prison before his daring prison break on 3 May 2022. However, according to Maughan, prison records support the state’s notion that before Dr Nandipha Magudumana arrived in the picture, pre-2017, Bester’s life as a prison inmate at Mangaung prison was regular.
He didn’t enjoy the freedoms he assumed after Dr Nandipha’s first visit, where it’s reported she hired top lawyers to file a slew of complaints about his living conditions.
in fact, Maughan revealed, Dr Nandipha could be implicated in a sordid plot to murder Katlego Bereng Mpholo, the man whose charred remains were smuggled into Bester’s prison cell to pull off the brazen escape.
Magudumana and her co-accused were scheduled to appear in court for the first of what should be an eventful two-day bail hearing on Wednesday.