Viljoens in Legal Hot Water

The Hawks’ Johannesburg serious commercial crime investigation unit has finalized three fraud cases linked to the Tammy Taylor SA franchise, officially referring the completed dockets to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).

The cases follow long-standing allegations that reality television personalities Peet and Mel Viljoen defrauded local entrepreneurs by deliberately selling non-existent salon franchises. Lieutenant-Colonel Granville Meyer, spokesperson for the Hawks, confirmed these “pertained to cases opened at SAPS Garsfontein during 2022.”

The fresh legal escalation follows previous civil judgments against the embattled couple. Judge Joseph Raulinga previously declared a prospective franchisee’s transaction “void and unconscionable” under consumer protection law, ordering a R600,000 repayment. The court explicitly found that Viljoen’s representations “were false” and constituted unlawful misrepresentations.

While the NPA evaluates prosecution for the beauty franchise scam, Peet Viljoen remains behind bars at Kgosi Mampuru II Correctional Centre awaiting a formal bail hearing. He faces an unrelated municipal property fraud scheme involving 400 separate criminal charges. Opposing his application for release, state prosecutor Willem van Zyl argued that the offenses “all fall under Schedule 5 as they involved millions of rand,” setting a significantly higher evidentiary bar for his temporary release from state custody during his upcoming court appearance this Friday.

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