Something that was long suspected has been confirmed. Reports earlier this year suggesting that Uwe Gemballa was "sleeping with the fishes" has now been confirmed after the German tuning expert's body was found wrapped in cellophane somewhere in South Africa.
There's not much information available but from what we have learnt, Uwe's murder was somehow tied to an international illegal money laundering scheme involving Czech crime boss Radovan Krejcir. According to a witness testimony, Gemballa and Krejcir have been involved in money laundering transactions since 2002. But in September 2009, s**t hit the fan when Gemballa stopped making payments to Krejcir on time.
This prompted Krejcir to do what he does best. An associate of Krejcir lured Gemballa to South Africa under the guise of reaching a new business agreement. According to reports, airport surveillance show the German being picked up by a man believed to be a Russian associate of Krejcir on February 8th 2010. The two later traveled to a house and Uwe was forced to call his wife and ask for one million dollars. When the money didn't arrive, the inevitable happened.
Uwe was found shot in the head with his hands tied behind his back.
Apparently Uwe was facing difficulty paying Gemballa employees and his wife, who has been given power of attorney for the company, has filed bankruptcy for the tuning company but there are also reports suggesting that current employees are looking for ways to revive the company.
Local police have not commented on any of the surrounding circumstances of Gemballa's death.
Vishnu Naidoo, a South African police spokesman said: “We have found the body of Gemballa and we're now investigating the circumstances around his death. A murder docket has been opened.”
No arrests have yet been made, but two German police officers are in South Africa to assist with the investigation.
