South Africa said on Friday that a court in the United Arab Emirates has rejected its request for the extradition of brothers Atul and Rajesh Gupta accused of involvement in corruption deals in the country's industrial sector.
South African Justice Minister Ronald Lamula said his government had been informed on Thursday evening of a Dubai court's decision not to allow the extradition of the brothers, who were arrested in the same city in June.
"We learned with amazement and disappointment that the extradition hearing was held in a court in Dubai on February 13 and our extradition request was rejected," Lamula said in a statement.
He stressed that the UAE court considered that it had jurisdiction to hear incidents of money laundering accused of the Brotherhood because they took place in the same country and in South Africa.
Cancellation of Arrest Warrant
Regarding the charges of fraud and corruption, the same court ruled to cancel the arrest warrant against the two brothers, according to the Minister of Justice, explaining that "the reasons given for rejecting our request cannot be explained."
South Africa requested the Gupta brothers' extradition in July shortly after their arrest in Dubai.
The brothers, who are originally Indian, are accused of controlling the state in South Africa, exploiting a long-standing friendship with Jacob Zuma, whom they paid bribes to in his two states (2009-2018).
They are also accused of systematically looting state coffers, looting public companies, and expanding their grip to the point of influencing government appointments.
In 2018, an independent commission was tasked with investigating state corruption, the ANC prompted Zuma to resign, and the Gupta brothers disappeared before they were found in Dubai.