Judge recusal pushes Nafiz Modack's tax case to 2026

Alleged underworld figure Nafiz Modack’s tax matter is set to start next year.

His co-accused won’t be happy as they’ll now have to wait longer for the ball get rolling thanks to him being tied-up in another case.

This comes after Modack successfully got Judge Mark Sher to recuse himself, as the judge had previously dealt with his bail appeal in March 2023 in the case where he stands accused of murdering top cop Lieutenant-Colonel Charl Kinnear.

Modack, along with eight others including his mother and brother, are accused of defrauding SARS out of R46 million in a dodgy tax refund scheme.

The trial was expected to start yesterday, but thanks to the recusal, the court heard there was not enough time to appoint a new judge, so the matter was shifted to January 2026.

Despite the delay, Modack still needs time to prepare and has asked for an electronic device to go through all the court documents behind bars. 

Meanwhile, the court heard that bogus accountant and co-accused Faried van der Schyff had been given a device to prepare for the trial, but it was taken back after he was sentenced to three years direct imprisonment in another tax fraud case, which was heard at the Cape Town Regional Court.

The court also heard that while the Kinnear murder trial takes a break later this year, Modack will have two months to get his ducks in a row for the tax matter.

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Cape Argus