THE case of 15 health officials from the Otjozondjupa region who were linked to a 2016 fraud incident involving N$8,2 million, was last Friday provisionally withdrawn pending further police investigations.
The 15 accused were Lucresia Matsuis, Namboa Jenneveva, Dr Esther Namwandi, Andrew Neidel, Frieda Fillemon, Engine Sawas, Josephine Lifumbela, who is now deceased, Berreldine Narib, Christine Ndeutapo, Laurentia Narubes, Temos Mutewa, Sana Dauses, Magdalena Horases, Victoria Hases and Selma Hindulua.
The accused, who were out on bail of N$10 000 and N$40 000, were employed as nurses, cleaners, ambulance drivers, accountants and dentists at the time of their arrests in 2016.
Then aged between 41 and 59 years, they were napped after the Namibian Police’s serious crime investigations unit conducted investigations into a fraud case opened in May 2014 by the office of the Otjozondjupa health director.
They appeared in the Otjiwarongo Magistrate’s Court, and 13 of them engaged lawyers privately, while two applied for state-funded legal representation.
On 3 May 2019, their case was brought back to court on a third and last remand for further police investigations, but prosecutor Coleen Yisa then told the court that police had not completed their investigations.
Magistrate Eduard Kesslau provisionally allowed the withdrawal of the case on the ground that the police should complete the investigations first, and then bring the case back to court for continuation. The accused were also allowed to reclaim their bail money.
Otjozondjupa police spokesperson, inspector Maureen Mbeha, yesterday told Nampa that the case is complicated, and the police would therefore need more time to complete the investigations.
– Nampa
