Update

GEORGE NEWS - The magic carpet ride of con man Tarkan Cakmak is finally nearing an end after he was found guilty of fraud in the Thembalethu Regional Court on Wednesday 14 November.

In May 2016, Cakmak conned Gallery 7 in the Eden Meander Lifestyle Centre out of four Persian carpets worth more than R300 000. He was arrested by the investigating officer, Jydrean Heathcote, at his own carpet business in Greenacres Shopping Centre in Port Elizabeth shortly afterwards, and released on R10 000 bail in June that year.

Cakmak took four Persian rugs on consignment at Gallery 7, saying he wanted to see if they suited his house in Sands Road in Wilderness.

According to store manager Lettie Kümm, Cakmak told her he wanted to purchase three rugs for his wedding anniversary as a surprise for his wife. He told another employee, Hassan Aittaleb, he wanted to buy it for his wife as a birthday gift.

After taking the carpets, Aittaleb accompanied Cakmak to the address in Wilderness. When Aittaleb got out of the car at the house, Cakmak made a quick U-turn, drove off and never returned. During cross examination earlier this year Cakmak said that Aittaleb wanted a lift to Wilderness.

Cakmak also claimed that he paid Kümm R25 000 for the four carpets, but did not get a receipt. The court found this to be highly unlikely.

The manager of Gallery 7, Lettie Kümm, is extremely relieved that the drama of the last two and a half years is coming to an end at last.

During her verdict, Regional Magistrate Pumela Yono intimated that Cakmak has proved to be an unreliable witness who changed his version and details of the story during the trial. She said the manager of Gallery 7, Lettie Kümm, was in contrast clear and concise during her testimony and obviously had nothing to hide.

Cakmak will be sentenced on 25 January 2019. Karin Barnard is the state prosecutor.

Following court proceedings Kümm said she was extremely relieved.

"After two and a half years of tremendous stress and being falsely accused of doing a R25 000 deal under the table, I can breathe. Tarkan Cakmak and his lawyer, Stuart Laubscher, carried on about how I was lying and how unreliable I am.

"They even told suppliers in Johannesburg that he [Cakmak] paid for carpets and that he and I had made a deal. To this day he maintains his innocence. When the magistrate found him guilty, tears of relief and happiness rolled down my cheeks. I have been working for Mr Isparta at Gallery 7 for more than seven years and I have never been accused of such a thing in my life. It's a slap in the face. I am a sincere person with high moral values and integrity. I have never needed to steal anything. Just thinking about it is bad enough," Kümm said.

Manager of Gallery 7, Lettie Kümm, is extremely relieved that the drama of the last two and a half years is coming to an end at last.