Former Bosasa chief operating officer Angelo Agrizzi will apply for leave to appeal against a Gauteng High Court order compelling him to pay the state R1.66 billion linked to corruption involving the company’s government contracts. Agrizzi said the amount represented the value of contracts awarded to Bosasa rather than money he personally received. The court order was made on 29 October by Judge Mosopa of the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria.
Agrizzi's appeal will focus on the calculation of the confiscation order, not his criminal conviction. He pleaded guilty to corruption and money laundering charges in November 2025 and was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment on each of the four counts, with the sentences wholly suspended for five years. Agrizzi's cooperation with investigators and providing evidence in prosecutions linked to Bosasa were conditions of his suspended sentences.
The confiscation order was made under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act, which allows the state to recover benefits derived from unlawful activities. The court found that Agrizzi had benefited from Bosasa’s corrupt activities and that the state’s application had succeeded. The court rejected his argument that he could not be held responsible for the wider proceeds of the company’s criminal activities.
According to the judgment, the state put the value of the illegal activities linked to Agrizzi at R1.66bn. However, Agrizzi disputes the calculation and argues that the confiscation order exceeds the value of the benefits he personally derived. He stated that he was Bosasa’s chief operating officer, an employee, and not a director or shareholder of Bosasa.
The NPA argued that Bosasa and its subsidiaries had operated as corporate vehicles to secure government contracts through the bribery of public officials, with Agrizzi participating in the enterprise as its chief operating officer. Agrizzi, however, claims that the contract payments were made to the company, not to him. He said the state’s own heads of argument described the R1.66bn as the value of contracts the department of correctional services awarded to Bosasa.
Agrizzi expressed concerns about delays in pursuing other people implicated in the commission’s findings. He alleged that evidence he had prepared and handed to investigators had been damaged. He questioned why several politically connected individuals identified by the commission had not been prosecuted. Agrizzi also stated that other former Bosasa executives implicated in the commission’s findings remain employed by the companies that took over Bosasa’s operations.
Agrizzi said he had continued to provide information to investigators and had repeatedly raised concerns about delays in pursuing other people implicated in the commission’s findings. He supports the recovery of the proceeds of crime but asks that a confiscation order reflect what he actually received, as the law requires. Agrizzi's application for leave to appeal will focus on determining the correct value of benefits he personally received from Bosasa's corrupt activities.
Key points
- Angelo Agrizzi to appeal R1.66 billion confiscation order
- Agrizzi disputes calculation of confiscation order
- Confiscation order linked to Bosasa government contracts corruption
