Daily Maverick
Dailymaverick logo

Maverick News

Maverick News

‘Hot tub plunge destroyed Covid evidence’ – US R&B singer Joe Thomas in SA no-show legal drama

‘Hot tub plunge destroyed Covid evidence’ – US R&B singer Joe Thomas in SA no-show legal drama
Caryn Dolley
By Caryn Dolley
15 Jan 2024
Facebook
4
American R&B artist Joe Thomas was meant to perform in SA at businessman Robin Vela’s birthday in July 2022. However, Thomas said he contracted Covid and couldn’t travel. Vela wants proof. The matter, involving claims of evidence getting lost in a hot tub, is now playing out in a US court.

Grammy award-nominated R&B artist Joe Thomas jumped into a hot tub with his cellphone in his pocket, destroying evidence showing that he had Covid in 2022, which prevented him from performing in South Africa at the time.

This is a key point of contention in a legal spat between Thomas and businessman Robin Vela, who was once Zimbabwe’s National Social Security Authority chair. He was reportedly cleared of corruption relating to his position.

R6m and 50th birthday bash

Thomas, known simply by his first name, was booked to perform at Vela’s 50th birthday party in South Africa in July 2022.

The birthday celebrations, rolled out over six days between Johannesburg and Cape Town, appear to have been so grand that it had a website with links to several videos.

https://youtu.be/GTjC8l6Ud5A?si=2l8_wG0M7-KcHqQq

Behind the expansive celebrations, though, there were problems.

According to court papers, Vela believes Thomas used an “imagined illness” – Covid – to back out of the birthday gig and violated a contractual agreement. Because of that, Vela lost about R6-million.

He now wants Thomas to pay up.

Vela, via the company Rob Vel Trading Pty Ltd, a Gauteng-based company of which Vela is the director, is driving legal proceedings in the US against Thomas.

City Press first reported on the matter back in September 2022, saying that in a letter of demand, Vela threatened to sue the singer to recover the money he spent on trying to get Thomas to South Africa to perform at Sun City in North West on 16 July that year.

An order from the Supreme Court in New York County, dated 2 January 2024, contains more details about the saga.

‘Many, many demands’


The case revolves around a dismissed attempt by Rob Vel Trading to get Thomas to produce certain documents and be sanctioned for the spoliation (depriving the right to possession) of evidence.

It said that Rob Vel Trading, in other words, Robin Vela, believed Thomas “refused to perform” at the birthday party in South Africa in July 2022.



When the performance was still in its planning stages, Thomas’ manager – referenced in the court order simply as Mr Isaacs – had communicated Thomas’ “demands” to Vela.

“These included, among many, many demands, a fee for $75,000 to be paid upfront, first-class travel arrangements for Mr Thomas and his 13-person entourage, as well as specific accommodations once in South Africa,” the court papers said.

Rob Vel Trading said it met all the demands, but that two days before the party, Thomas cancelled and said he had tested positive for Covid.

Court papers from last year said Rob Vel Trading stated that “because the cancellation was so close in time to the party, it was unable to get refunds on the expenditures it had made to accommodate [Thomas’] demands.”

Eventually, the $75,000 performance fee was returned.

‘Imagined illness’ and a hot tub


In court papers from 2 January this year, it was alleged that Rob Vel Trading pushed for proof of the Covid diagnosis, but that “Mr Thomas refused to provide” it.

Rob Vel Trading alleged that Thomas “used this imagined illness as a way to get out of the performance.”

In terms of the Covid diagnosis, Rob Vel Trading argued that the only proof Thomas provided was “a screenshot of a text message containing a picture of a positive Covid test.”

It did not contain any other details, including a date or the names and contact numbers of the participants in the phone conversations.

“[Rob Vel Trading] observes that Mr Thomas testified that months after he did not perform at the party, he jumped into a hot tub with his phone in his pocket and that this caused him to lose all of [his] text messages and photos,” the court papers from 2 January said.

“[Rob Vel Trading] contends that Mr Thomas was under an obligation to preserve evidence about this dispute long before his iPhone was destroyed in the hot tub (sometime in early 2023) as the performance was scheduled for July 2022 and this lawsuit commenced in 2022. 

“It questions why he did not back up his phone or do anything to preserve this evidence.”

‘Sometimes accidents happen’


According to the court papers, Thomas referred to what had happened to his cellphone as an “inadvertent loss.”

“He admits that he no longer possesses a copy of the original image of his Covid test because of the loss of his phone,” it said.

“Mr Thomas argues that there is no evidence that his conduct was wilful or in bad faith…

“Defendant Thomas also argues that he has produced all available evidence and that he typically communicates about a performance at a rehearsal or sound check and not necessarily in written form.”

According to the court papers, Thomas had insisted that he communicated with his manager about his Covid diagnosis over the phone.

In relation to Thomas testifying “that he lost the data in his old phone because he went into a hot tub while the phone was in his pocket,” the court found that “sometimes accidents happen.” 

Thomas had stated that he had no other documents he could use in the case and the court ruled that, “to avoid any unfair surprise” to Rob Vel Trading, Thomas would therefore not be allowed to rely on newly introduced documents going forward.

New gigs in SA


Legal drama aside, Thomas’ shows are going on.

And he is expected to perform in South Africa, where he has been before, in April this year.



 










View this post on Instagram























 

A post shared by JOE THOMAS (@therealjoethomas)






According to online ticket sales platform Webtickets: “On the 27th of April, he’ll be setting the stages on fire at the legendary Sun City, then, on the 28th of April, Cape Town [is] in for a treat as Joe brings his award-winning talents to the Grand Arena Grand West. 

“Finally, on the 30th of April, the Sunbet Arena in Pretoria will be the place to be as Joe delivers an unforgettable performance.” DM

Categories:

Tags: