South Africa’s attempt to extradite wealthy Gupta family from UAE fails

South Africa has tried unsuccessfully to extradite two brothers of the wealthy Gupta family from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Arthur and Rajesh Gupta have been accused in South Africa of exploiting and unfairly influencing their close ties to former President Jacob Zuma.

The Justice Department said it was “shocked and dismayed” by the move.

The brothers, who have denied any wrongdoing, fled after a judicial committee opened an investigation into a major corruption scandal.

Extradition talks with South Africa began after the Indian-born Guptas was arrested in the United Arab Emirates last June.

But South Africa’s justice minister, Ronald Lamola, was quoted by the TimesLive news site as saying a court in the United Arab Emirates had rejected the extradition request on technical grounds.

The decision was made in February but South Africa was not notified until Thursday.

“The reasons for denying our request are puzzling and contradict the UAE authorities’ assurances that our request complies with their requirements,” Mr Ramora said, according to South Africa’s Daily Mail and The Guardian.

Reuters quoted the minister as saying that the UAE court ruled that the UAE has the right to prosecute the Gupta family due to alleged money laundering offenses committed in the UAE and South Africa.

Mr Ramora said his government would appeal the decision.

In recent weeks, media reports have said the brothers are no longer in custody and have been found in Switzerland.

Many of the worst corruption allegations against the brothers have centered on their relationship with Mr Zuma, who was South Africa’s president from 2009 until he was forced out nine years later in a storm of corruption allegations.

The Guptas are accused of using their close ties to Mr Zuma to wield enormous political power at all levels of South Africa’s government – winning business contracts, influencing high-profile government appointments and embezzling state funds.

Mr Zuma and the Gupta family have denied the allegations.

South Africa negotiated an extradition treaty with the UAE in 2021, three years after the brothers fled the country.

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