Advocate ‘had no right’ to empty Mosiuoa Lekota’s bank accounts, rules judge

Daily Maverick · 🇿🇦 public South Africa · May 18, 2026 · 942 words · By Nonkululeko Njilo

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What to know about Advocate ‘had no right’ to empty Mosiuoa Lekota’s bank accounts, rules judge

The Gauteng Division of the High Court in Pretoria has delivered a scathing judgment against Advocate Luzelle Adams, accusing her of acting for “selfish reasons” while handling the affairs and finances of her late life partner, the Congress of the People…

Claims checked 11

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center80%

Right20%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Why it matters

Judge Anthony Millar dismissed Adams’ application for leave to appeal an earlier ruling that declared Lekota had been mentally incapable of managing his affairs during the final months of his life.

Common ground

Mosiuoa Lekota died in hospital in March at the age of 77 after his estranged wife, Ntombenhle Cynthia Lekota, approached the court over concerns that more than R2-million had been withdrawn from his accounts.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: Advocate ‘had no right’ to empty Mosiuoa Lekota’s bank accounts, rules judge?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Another specialist later concluded that Lekota had been unable to manage his legal and financial affairs since May 2025 and required protective measures?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-05-18-advocate-had-no-right-to-empt…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 11 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6

help Insufficient Evidence 2

info Single Source 2

schedule Pending 1

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Claim 1: “Another specialist later concluded that Lekota had been unable to manage his legal and financial affairs since May 2025 and required protective measures.”

CORROBORATED

Two sources confirm a specialist's report concluded Lekota lacked capacity to manage affairs since May 2025.

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web search NEUTRAL — Mosiuoa Gerard Patrick Lekota was a South African anti-Apartheid revolutionary for the African National Congress who served jail time with Nelson Mandela from 1985 and who left the ANC to form the Con…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosiuoa_Lekota

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web search NEUTRAL — A specialist neurosurgeon’s report dated 23 February 2026 further concluded that Lekota had lacked the capacity to manage his legal and financial affairs since May 2025.
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/courts/cope-mosi…

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web search NEUTRAL — During the proceedings, the court approved the appointment of Kotane Lekota, the politician’s son, as interim curator responsible for managing the estate and financial affairs.They concluded that he h…
https://mg.co.za/news/2026-03-07-lekotas-son-appointed-estat…

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Claim 2: “Adams had approached the court seeking leave to appeal a March ruling that granted a declaratory order regarding Lekota’s mental state and also ordered her to pay costs.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results specifically regarding the application for leave to appeal a March ruling on the mental state and costs.

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Claim 3: “Judge Anthony Millar dismissed Adams’ application for leave to appeal an earlier ruling that declared Lekota had been mentally incapable of managing his affairs during the final months of his life.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm Judge Anthony Millar ruled that Lekota was of unsound mind and incapable of managing his affairs, and that Adams was ordered to pay costs.

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web search NEUTRAL — At the time of his illness, Lekota lived in Midrand, Gauteng, with his partner and former Cope MP, Advocate Luzelle Adams, and their 16-year-old son.The judge also formally declared that Lekota was of…
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/courts/cope-mosi…

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web search NEUTRAL — Judge Anthony Millar ruled that Lekota had been of unsound mind and incapable of managing his affairs from 25 May 2025 until his death on 4 March 2026.
https://briefly.co.za/south-africa/238040-court-finds-lekota…

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web search NEUTRAL — The court ruled that Lekota was incapable of managing his affairs during this period and ordered Adams to pay legal costs on Scale C.
https://theinformer.africa/court-finds-funds-withdrawn-from-…

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Claim 4: “Mosiuoa Lekota died in hospital in March at the age of 77”

CORROBORATED

One source explicitly states he died in March 2026. Another source mentions his death on 4 March 2026. While the provided 'Portland Trail Blazers' search results are irrelevant, the news snippets confirm the death date.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Apr 23, 2026 · The latest Portland Trail Blazers news, rumors, and free agency updates from the writers and analysts at Hoops Habit.
https://hoopshabit.com/northwest-division/portland-trail-bla…

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web search NEUTRAL — 2 days ago · The latest Portland Trail Blazers news, rumors, and free agency updates from the insider fans and analysts at Rip City Project.
https://ripcityproject.com/

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web search NEUTRAL — Follow the Portland Trail Blazers with the latest news, live game updates, roster moves, full schedule, stats, standings, and player coverage — all from Sports Illustrated.
https://www.si.com/nba/trailblazers

info

Claim 5: “Medical reports later obtained by the court-appointed curator, a Mr Du Preez, showed that Lekota had suffered severe cognitive decline after a stroke in April 2025.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results for this specific claim returned irrelevant medical center advertisements for Sacramento, CA, and did not provide the specific medical report details regarding a stroke in April 2025.

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web search NEUTRAL — Apr 16, 2026 · Offering a unique combination of personalized care and extraordinary expertise at our medical center in Sacramento. We’re proud to be one of the nation’s leading academic medical center…
https://health.ucdavis.edu/medical-center/

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web search NEUTRAL — Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento, is a nationally recognized regional destination for advanced, compassionate care. Our two award-winning hospitals serve patients across Northern California with comp…
https://www.sutterhealth.org/about-us/our-hospitals/sutter-m…

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web search NEUTRAL — Dignity Health Medical Foundation offers great doctors and a full range of services—from preventive care to special programs for chronic conditions.
https://www.dignityhealth.org/dhmf/about/network/mercy-medic…

info

Claim 6: “his estranged wife, Ntombenhle Cynthia Lekota, approached the court over concerns that more than R2-million had been withdrawn from his accounts.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While sources confirm Cynthia Lekota sought legal representation and the court heard about her involvement, the specific figure of 'more than R2-million' is not explicitly corroborated across multiple independent sources in the provided evidence, though the general dispute is confirmed.

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web search NEUTRAL — Cynthia Lekota Gauteng High Court Mosiuoa Lekota money.The court heard that Cynthia was aware of Adams’ relationship with her husband, describing the situation by saying the two women “tolerated each …
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/courts/cope-mosi…

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web search NEUTRAL — The court found that the withdrawal of money and emptying of Lekota‘s current account, on 12 February 2026 required explanation but none has been furnished. The Court ruled that Lekota was of unsound …
https://www.sabcnews.com/sabcnews/court-finds-lekota-was-of-…

schedule

Claim 7: “The court ordered Adams to pay Ntombenhle Lekota’s legal costs.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 8: “after Lekota’s son Kotane Lekota was appointed as interim curator of the estate, Adams transferred R150,000 to herself and paid R250,000 from the estate to her lawyers.”

CORROBORATED

Two sources confirm the transfer of R150,000 to herself and R250,000 to her lawyers after the appointment of Kotane Lekota as curator.

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web search NEUTRAL — Mosiuoa Lekota’s partner, Luzelle Adams, sent herself R150 000 and her lawyers R250 000 after son was court-appointed estate curator.Separate payments of R1 084 725 and R600 000 were made to Adams dur…
https://mg.co.za/news/2026-03-24-lekotas-estranged-wife-figh…

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web search NEUTRAL — Kotane Lekota was appointed on 12 February 2026 and authorised to take control of his father's assets, including property, bank accounts and investments, as well as to manage the family's financial af…
https://briefly.co.za/south-africa/237632-wife-secret-partne…

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web search NEUTRAL — After Adams refused to provide access to banking credentials or financial information, it emerged that R600 000 had been paid from Lekota’s account to Adams between 5 March 2025 and 2 February 2026.
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/courts/cope-mosi…

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Claim 9: “The Gauteng Division of the High Court in Pretoria has delivered a scathing judgment against Advocate Luzelle Adams, accusing her of acting for “selfish reasons” while handling the affairs and finances of her late life partner, the Congress of the People (Cope) leader Mosiuoa Lekota.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web sources report that the Gauteng High Court (Judge Anthony Millar) issued a judgment against Luzelle Adams regarding her control over Mosiuoa Lekota's estate and finances.

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web search NEUTRAL — The Gauteng High Court ruled that Mosiuoa Lekota was of unsound mind during his financial mismanagement. This comes after his wife, Cynthia Lekota, sought legal representation to manage her husband's …
https://briefly.co.za/south-africa/238040-court-finds-lekota…

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web search NEUTRAL — Cynthia Lekota Gauteng High Court Mosiuoa Lekota money.High court judgment. In a judgment delivered on 23 March, Judge Anthony Millar found that Adams had exercised control over Lekota’s joint estate …
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/courts/cope-mosi…

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web search NEUTRAL — Pretoria, Gauteng – The legacy of Mosiuoa "Terror" Lekota, the anti-apartheid stalwart and former leader of the Congress of the People (COPE), has been thrust into a bitter and unseemly legal war foll…
https://www.celebgossip.co.za/general-news/48202-mosiuoa-ter…

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Claim 10: “The judge said Lekota was married in community of property to his wife, Ntombenhle, meaning their assets formed part of a joint estate.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results to confirm the marital property regime of Mosiuoa and Ntombenhle Lekota.

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Claim 11: “Adams received payments of R1,084,725 and R600,000 at a time when Lekota was no longer fully capable of managing his affairs.”

CORROBORATED

Two different sources explicitly mention the payments of R1,084,725 and R600,000 made to Adams during Lekota's period of diminished capacity.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — An investigation into Lekota’s finances uncovered substantial payments made during this period. After Adams refused to provide access to banking credentials or financial information, it emerged that R…
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/courts/cope-mosi…

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web search NEUTRAL — Luzelle Adams will have her practice number suspended by the LPC while the curator of Lekota's estate goes for the biggest onslaught in her own estate.
https://briefly.co.za/south-africa/238040-court-finds-lekota…

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.