Crowdfunding campaign to defend Piet Vilhoen closed by BackaBuddy platform

The crowdfunding campaign created to raise funds for the legal defense of Piet Vilhoen was halted by the BackaBuddy platform shortly after its launch. This campaign started seven days ago with the participation of Tammy van der Merwe and Vilhoen's wife, Melanie, aiming to raise R400,000 to cover his legal expenses while he is in custody awaiting a bail application decision.

BackaBuddy Platform's Decision

Visitors to the campaign page now see a notification that fundraising is closed. The platform stated that this decision was made in accordance with BackaBuddy's terms and conditions of use, which are applied to ensure the protection of donors, campaign creators, and community integrity. BackaBuddy also reported that all corresponding donations are being systematically returned to the donors.

Reasons and Case Context

The campaign was launched after Van der Merwe appealed to the public to support Vilhoen's fight for 'freedom and due process'. At the start of the project, Van der Merwe wrote that the lives of Melanie and Piet had changed forever and called on people to unite to support them. Vilhoen recently appeared before the Pretoria Specialized Commercial Court, where the case was adjourned due to his bail application. He has been in custody since June 16th following his arrest by the Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation unit at OR Tambo International Airport.

Charges and Investigation

The 57-year-old Vilhoen is accused of fraud, theft, forgery, use of false documents, and violation of Section 4 of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act. According to Hawks information, the arrest followed an extensive investigation into the alleged fraudulent sale of property belonging to Johannesburg Property Company (JPC), which is wholly owned by the City of Johannesburg Municipality. Hawks claims that in May 2010, several properties belonging to JPC were illegally sold to unsuspecting bona fide buyers. Despite the transfer and sale of these properties, Johannesburg Property Company reportedly did not receive payment for the transactions, leading to significant financial loss.

Additional Incidents

Authorities added that the incident was initially registered at the Sandton and Boskop police stations before being transferred to the Serious Commercial Crime Investigation unit for further investigation. Furthermore, this year Vilhoen and his wife Melanie Vilhoen attracted international attention after their arrest in Boca Raton, Florida, in March 2026. They were detained on charges of participating in an organized retail theft scheme involving food items worth over $5,000 USD (approximately R81,000) from a supermarket. The couple denied intentional theft of groceries, although US authorities claimed that surveillance footage showed their involvement in the scheme.