(RSS feed) on Oct 13th 2010 at 4:01PM

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/10/13/followup-did-uwe-gemballa-die-because-of-a-money-laundering-sch/

Uwe Gemballa disappeared in February, 2010. His body wasn't discovered until early October with telltale signs of the foulest play, during which time his eponymous tuning shop had closed and reopened with a new director. Police in South Africa and Germany have the task of piecing together what happened and, if possible, bringing someone to trial.

A report in the South African Mail & Guardian suggests that Gemballa was executed because of a dispute with Radovan Krejcir, a billionaire and Czech national wanted in his home country to face charges including murder, counterfeiting, abduction and tax evasion. According to the report, Krejcir was allegedly bringing money into South Africa in Gemballa cars, but one car arrived without its cargo.

At least one former associate of Krejcir, who fears for his life due to unrelated dealings with the Czech, told police that Krejcir planned to get rid of Gemballa. The purported reason for his visit was to open a Gemballa branch in the country in partnership with Jerome Safi, who claims to have been backed by Krejcir and a strip club owner named Lolly Jackson. Jackson, coincidentally, was shot and killed in May of this year by a man said to be a former employee of Krejcir.

It's a story more than strange enough to be completely true. For the moment, however, all the police know for certain now is that Gemballa met a man at OR Tambo airport near Johannesberg, after which he was never seen alive again.