Five in court over VoIP calls

THE case in which five foreign nationals are accused of operating illegal Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services at Walvis Bay has been postponed to October this year.

Shen Yuefei (37) and Qipin Huang (36), co-owners of James and Rose shop, and Tsan-Jung Wu (68) and Yaming /Xu (48) of Ganen Lushen Shop appeared on Monday in the Walvis Bay Magistrate’s Court together with Xinlan /Gan (41) of China Shop – all outlets situated in the harbour town’s Sam Nujoma Drive. They were arrested on Saturday by Telecom Namibia’s Fraud Monitoring Unit, assisted by the Namibian Police.Oiva Angula, acting head of public relations at Telecom, said earlier that they also seized the equipment used to offer cheap international calls via an Internet connection.Magistrate Petrus Nangula granted the five bail of N$3 000 each and they paid the money.They must return to court on October 30 after the case was postponed for further investigation.Public Prosecutor Victor Gabriel appeared on behalf of the State.The suspects were allegedly caught red-handed while attempting to sell the service to a member of the public.”It is evident that for these illegal operators, the provision of VoIP to the public is an opportunity for ill-gotten income rather than an opportunity for better service,” according to Angula.The five were charged with violating the Postal and Telecommunication Act of 1992.The Act prohibits the provision of any telecommunications service by any person without a licence.Saturday’s raid led to the discovery of electronic equipment used for VoIP connections, bypassing Telecom Namibia’s switching facilities.Among the equipment confiscated were IPstars, a device that helps to make Internet phone calls without using a computer.They were arrested on Saturday by Telecom Namibia’s Fraud Monitoring Unit, assisted by the Namibian Police.Oiva Angula, acting head of public relations at Telecom, said earlier that they also seized the equipment used to offer cheap international calls via an Internet connection.Magistrate Petrus Nangula granted the five bail of N$3 000 each and they paid the money.They must return to court on October 30 after the case was postponed for further investigation.Public Prosecutor Victor Gabriel appeared on behalf of the State.The suspects were allegedly caught red-handed while attempting to sell the service to a member of the public.”It is evident that for these illegal operators, the provision of VoIP to the public is an opportunity for ill-gotten income rather than an opportunity for better service,” according to Angula.The five were charged with violating the Postal and Telecommunication Act of 1992.The Act prohibits the provision of any telecommunications service by any person without a licence.Saturday’s raid led to the discovery of electronic equipment used for VoIP connections, bypassing Telecom Namibia’s switching facilities.Among the equipment confiscated were IPstars, a device that helps to make Internet phone calls without using a computer.