The US government has imposed sanctions on South Africa’s Gupta business family and an associate over their alleged role in a vast corruption scandal linked to the former president, Jacob Zuma. The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said on Thursday that it had placed Atul, Ajay and Rajesh ‘Tony’ Gupta, a trio of Indian-born brothers, on its sanctions list as “members of a significant corruption network in South Africa” that looted state coffers. The Guptas have been accused in South Africa of using a friendship with Mr Zuma to control cabinet appointments and public contracts for their private benefit. Mr Zuma left office last year after being sacked by the governing African National Congress. His successor as president, Cyril Ramaphosa, has pledged to root out the alleged ‘capture’ of the state by the Guptas. “The Gupta family leveraged its political connections to engage in widespread corruption and bribery, capture government contracts, and misappropriate state assets,” Sigal Mandelker, the US Treasury’s under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence,” said. The sanctions target “the Guptas’ pay-to-play political patronage, which was orchestrated at the expense of the South African people,” Ms Mandelker added. Salim Essa, a close business ally of the Guptas, was also designated under the US sanctions. The Treasury’s move will forbid US entities from doing business with the family or handling their assets. The Guptas, Mr Essa and Mr Zuma have always denied wrongdoing. The family left South Africa for the United Arab Emirates after Mr Zuma fell from power.