Mboweni claims extortion after woman threatens to reveal private WhatsApps for R100K
12 October 2019
Finance Minister Tito Mboweni is taking legal action against a woman he alleges is attempting to extort money from him.
According to letters by Mboweni's lawyer, Jerome Levitz, which News24 has in its possession, a woman has threatened to divulge WhatsApp and voice-recorded conversations between her and Mboweni.
The woman has reportedly been offered R100 000 to go public with the correspondence. The name of both the woman and the prominent businessman who offered to pay for the correspondence are known to News24.
Mboweni and the woman met online, according to his spokesperson, Kay Sexwale, but he maintains they never met nor had a romantic relationship.
During their correspondence, the woman requested Mboweni pay R7 000 for her rent and registration, which he declined.
Sexwale said a Sunday newspaper was in possession of the correspondence.
According to correspondence between Levitz and the woman, Mboweni has been advised to take further action by reporting the incident to the police."Our client [Mboweni] has requested us to advise you of the aforementioned allegation and to invite you to comment thereon and to confirm that [the woman's] allegations are false.
