Burna Boy’s concert in South Africa cancelled over R10m theft claim

A concert scheduled for Burna Boy in South Africa was reportedly cancelled due to R10 million theft allegations.

The Afro-fusion singer was expected to perform at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on September 23.

Burna Boy, however, called off the event over organisers’ inability to meet their “contractual, financial, production, and technical obligations”.

The Nigerian singer also dismissed claims that the concert was cancelled due to low ticket sales.

However, according to a report, a R10 million fraud case was what led to the cancellation of Burna Boy’s concert in Johannesburg.

Sowetan Live reports that Sedote Nwachukwu, the CEO of Ternary Media Group, the entertainment company organising the ‘Twice as Tall’ hitmaker’s concert, is accused of stealing the amount from the show’s budget.

The South African daily newspaper added that a case of fraud was opened by Nwachukwu’s business partner Gregory Wings at the Sandton police station.

Nwachukwu, who was also relieved of his duties, however, denied the allegation in a chat with News24.

“The allegations made against me is that I did not pay these people,” he said.

“The production budget ballooned from $200 000 to $665 000, which we did not account for due to the ever-changing production equipment that was added only one week prior to the event. This obviously impeded the event.”

In a statement on Wednesday, the entertainment company announced a leadership transition.

“Due to pending legal proceedings related to an upcoming Burna Boy concert in Johannesburg, the event has been postponed,” the statement reads.

“In light of the allegations of misconduct, Ternary Media Group has relieved Mr [Sedote] Nwachukwu of his CEO responsibilities until further notice.”

Last Thursday, Pro Tickets changed the status of Burna Boy’s concert from postponed to cancelled following the allegations.