Longer wait on the cards for SSC fraud suspects

THE Office of the Prosecutor General was yesterday given one more chance to reach a decision on the further prosecution of 64 people charged with defrauding the Social Security Commission of N$432 000 between April 2005 and September 2006.

With the case against former SSC employee Maxwell Elrico Spanneberg (30) and 63 co-accused having been postponed twice since September for a decision by the Prosecutor General, Public Prosecutor OJ Lino yesterday had to ask Magistrate Leah Shaanika in the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court in Katutura for another postponement for the same purpose. His request drew an objection from defence lawyer Hennie Barnard, though.The Magistrate postponed the case once again, to June 19, for the PG to decide on the further prosecution of the 64 charged suspects, but she also ordered that this would be the final postponement of the case for this purpose.Spanneberg, who is the first accused, was arrested on November 12 2006 on charges of fraud and corruption.After the charges had been amended, he pleaded not guilty to fraud, alternatively theft, on September 13.The State alleges that between April 21 2005 and September 8 2006, when Spanneberg was still employed by the SSC, he defrauded his employer by having sick leave claims in the names of his co-accused paid out by the SSC.These claims had in fact not been submitted to the SSC, or the people in whose names the claims were made were not entitled to receive the claimed payouts, it is alleged.The alleged fraudulent claims totalled N$432 270,81.Spanneberg was suspended from his post in the SSC’s Registry Division on August 30 2006, when a full-scale investigation of his alleged activities was ordered.The SSC dismissed him on November 2 2006, after he was found guilty of misconduct following a disciplinary hearing, the SSC has stated.Spanneberg and his co-accused are all free on bail, with Spanneberg having spent a month in Police custody before he was granted bail of N$15 000.Three of Spanneberg’s co-accused were not present in court yesterday.At least one of them, Willem Platt, had a valid excuse for his absence, though.Lino informed the Magistrate that Platt was absent because he had been arrested on a drug-related offence.Platt was arrested in Windhoek on Tuesday on a charge of having been found in possession of one piece of crack cocaine, valued at about N$100.He made a first appearance in the Luederitz Street Windhoek Magistrate’s Court on that charge yesterday, and was granted bail of N$500.His request drew an objection from defence lawyer Hennie Barnard, though.The Magistrate postponed the case once again, to June 19, for the PG to decide on the further prosecution of the 64 charged suspects, but she also ordered that this would be the final postponement of the case for this purpose.Spanneberg, who is the first accused, was arrested on November 12 2006 on charges of fraud and corruption.After the charges had been amended, he pleaded not guilty to fraud, alternatively theft, on September 13.The State alleges that between April 21 2005 and September 8 2006, when Spanneberg was still employed by the SSC, he defrauded his employer by having sick leave claims in the names of his co-accused paid out by the SSC.These claims had in fact not been submitted to the SSC, or the people in whose names the claims were made were not entitled to receive the claimed payouts, it is alleged.The alleged fraudulent claims totalled N$432 270,81.Spanneberg was suspended from his post in the SSC’s Registry Division on August 30 2006, when a full-scale investigation of his alleged activities was ordered.The SSC dismissed him on November 2 2006, after he was found guilty of misconduct following a disciplinary hearing, the SSC has stated.Spanneberg and his co-accused are all free on bail, with Spanneberg having spent a month in Police custody before he was granted bail of N$15 000.Three of Spanneberg’s co-accused were not present in court yesterday.At least one of them, Willem Platt, had a valid excuse for his absence, though.Lino informed the Magistrate that Platt was absent because he had been arrested on a drug-related offence.Platt was arrested in Windhoek on Tuesday on a charge of having been found in possession of one piece of crack cocaine, valued at about N$100.He made a first appearance in the Luederitz Street Windhoek Magistrate’s Court on that charge yesterday, and was granted bail of N$500.