“Deconstructing Narcissist & Racist Behavior in South Africa: The Agrizzi and Booysen chapter.”
“It is important to note that racism is a serious issue that can have a negative impact on individuals and society as a whole. Narcissistic racism is a type of narcissism where racism is an indicator of an individual’s personality disorder. It is characterized by self-centeredness and egocentrism and can manifest as racism in three ways: the narcissistic racist, stress-induced narcissistic racists, and socially misinformed narcissistic racists” credit
-How I met Angelo Agrizzi
In 2021, I was approached by a South African man named Angelo Agrizzi. He was introduced to our private group of whistleblower advocates by social worker John Clark, a noble man trying to make a difference in South Africa regarding whistleblowers who had seriously suffered retaliation. Angelo Agrizzi appeared at first to be humble, “charismatic” with words, and something of a comedian. He started to send me private messages, and on December 8, 2021, via What’s Up, he called me “a brother” and begged me to provide him with international assistance. At first, I was naïve, with a dose of nostalgia for living far away from South Africa. After all, this was the first time that a South African group of whistleblowers and human rights advocates had contacted me for assistance, and my excitement was strong at the time. In the days following, we exchanged messages, such as details of his case in South Africa, Christmas wishes, and photos of our families and homes. I received a variety of calls from Angelo, who was “eager” to impress me with his “contacts” in South Africa and suggested that I share with him confidential information about my previous South African whistleblowing case in order to “assist me” further. At first, I embraced Agrizzi and gave him the benefit of the doubt since he was introduced to me via a group of trusted South African whistleblowers and I lived thousands of miles away. He often complimented me for my advocacy, and he accused and condemned General Boysen, calling his crimes “hideous and advising me to proceed with a private prosecution against Booysen, while calling him “A typical Dutchman” and mocking up the alleged highjack on Booysen as staged, ( attached messages):
–History of the event that led to Agrizzi turning hostile towards me.
On January the 9th, Agrizzi surprised me with two calls that lasted 40 minutes, the first one was in my car while driving back home with my son, and after the signal was lost as I entered my home parking, he called me back to discuss with me the possibility of supporting him via my collaboration of international organisations such as BluePrint. I was on the speakerphone and the call was witnessed by other members of my family.
Angelo Agrizzi said to me, Quote:
”Ari, let me tell you, hey, I met them all; they used to come to me (bribes), the k (referenced to black South Africans), the C (referenced to Indian South Africans), and the Dutchman. The Dutchman, I hate the most”
Back in 2021-2022, many advocates and whistleblowers in our group had become frustrated with Angelo’s efforts to project himself as “the good fellow, “victim,” and “the whistleblower.” In protest, prominent human rights activists such as Martina Della Togna and Thandeka Gqubule Mbeki left the group, as did I, after we had a heated discussion about Angelo Agrizzi’s latest developments with South African social worker, a friend and administrator of the various whistleblower social support groups, John Clark.
It was at that time that I was informed by Martina and Thandeka among other activists and Whistleblowers in South Africa, that Angelo Agrizzi was in fact a self-confessed racist and was forced to publicly apologize and pay a R200,000 fine by the Human Rights Commission, as well as be charged criminally with corruption. Clearly, Agrizzi had approached me under false pretense.
I had permission to disclose Martine’s Della Togna message to me regarding Agrizzi :
By now, is common knowledge that Agrizzi was involved with criminal activities and was a self-confessed racist , but his testimony at the Zondo Commission provided key evidence against the government corruption of the ANC in South Africa. In Europe, we are taught to believe that the motive of a whistleblower is of no concern, but the value to the public is, provided that the whistleblower is not personally implicated in any crimes relating to his public disclosure. In my view, Angelo Agrizzi was a criminal turned informer who wished to strike a deal and cooperate with the authorities in order to receive a reduced sentence for the alleged crimes he committed and therefore did not fit the profile of a “honest” whistleblower. I had made the decision not to nominate him for the Blueprint for free speech awards since his background did not meet our ethics criteria. I supported and nominated many South African whistleblowers, such as Athol William, Cynthia Stimpel and Patricia Mashale among others, all of whom received International Blueprint awards.
I did not go public with Agrizzi’s repeated racist behavior witnessed back in 2021–22 because I was ethically and legally bound at the time not to publicly disclose any private conversation with Agrizzi. I was also nervous, since he was part of a very powerful lobby with many connections . His boss, the late Gavin Watson, died under “mysterious circumstances” after Angelo Agrizzi testified against him as part of the State Capture investigation in South Africa, and this was a major security concern for me and my family. It appears that some people involved with the Bosasa scandal and Agrizzi, had their lives cut short, just like in a true mafia drama. I did not have the stomach any longer to relive another life-threatening public disclosure in South Africa.
-“The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” Calling publicly for my killing by lynching.
Two years later, in January 2024, I discovered that Angelo had once again sold his soul to the devil and suddenly “partnered” with Apartheid career policeman Johan Booysen via a right-wing local fake news website, publicly making negative comments about my integrity. Ironically, Angelo is claiming to be “brain” damaged so as to avoid prosecution for his alleged crimes. Because Agrizzi attacked me publicly, he has forced me to defend myself and confront him privately, as well as lodge an official complaint with the Human Rights Commission Office in South Africa. After all, the Human Rights Commission was the one that had previously found Angelo Agrizzi guilty of racism. Agrizzi has become a pawn and is in a symbiotic relationship with a common purpose: to create a local platform to spread disinformation, as well as to character assassinate with fake news, whistleblowers, and human rights activists who are working towards exposing racism and corruption in South Africa. The South African Human Rights Commission replied to me that there was a pending mental evaluation of Agrizzi, so their hands were tied. On February 29, 2024, a judge ruled that Agrizzi was in fact mentally fit to stand trial for his alleged crimes, and as a result, the Human Rights Commission was going to re-examine my complaint. In the following days, Agrizzi escalated it further by publicly calling for my killing and the killing of a South African journalist (by lynching), in a comment published by Booysen on February 27, 2024, at 2:08 p.m., as can be seen in the screenshot attached. In particular, Agrizzi wrote, “They both should be lynched.”
Definition of lynching:
Quote: “What are lynchings? Lynching is the public killing of an individual who has not received any due process. These executions were often carried out by lawless mobs, though police officers did participate, under the pretext of justice.”
Ref : https://naacp.org/find-resources/history-explained/history-lynching-america
I had previously publicly exposed Booysen and his pet project, the Cato Manor police unit, for human rights violations in South Africa, including racism, torture, and extrajudicial killings of Africans.
Shocking as it may be, radical supremacist Afrikaners such as Captain Johan Booysen and Lieutenant Olivier, at the time with a documented dark history of extrajudicial killings during service with Apartheid specialized units, as reported in the Investigative papers used by the Goldstone Commission back in 1994, were still allowed to serve as high-ranking police officers after 1994.
Ref: (p. 29 of 146 CASE EIGHT isipingo DR7/9212 mRCH 1992) of the investigative files.
Even so, Booysen was an expert in manipulating and capturing the media and the judicial process in South Africa. The repeated criminal cases against them was dropped after seven years of continuous postponement; however, he was forced into early retirement, and the Cato Manor police unit was dismantled. Suddenly, there were much fewer Africans being killed and tortured at the hands of the South African police.
Recently, a new case has surfaced, implicating further Cato Manor policemen in wrongfully shooting and killing a 16-year-old innocent African schoolboy at his home! It took 14 years to bring this case in court. Shamefully, a lawless country such as South Africa has protected its own and silenced the victims.
Final thoughts:
I am pleased that dodgy characters such as Angelo Agrizzi, a self-confessed South African racist and corrupt businessman, together with ex-Apartheid policeman Johan Booysen, are targeting me and my family. It only depicts my narrative of the character assassination methods of retaliation that criminal minds are adapting against whistleblowers, their families, and human rights activists. Be as it may, I don’t hold grudges. Angelo Agrizzi is a lost soul with no integrity left in him. I wish him the best of luck in court, even though corruption and lies cannot buy him any more credit or any further luck. While devious souls such as Angelo Agrizzi & Johan Booysen in South Africa have partnered into a symbiotic relationship to further damage public interest, distort history, and publicly ask for my killing, I have moved on and dedicated my free time to helping make the world a better place for our children.
My human rights advocacy is pro bono.