No arrests on missing millions

THE disappearance of more than N$3 million in foreign currency from the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court in Katutura earlier this year is still being investigated by the Police, with no arrests yet made in connection with the case.

A Police spokesperson, Chief Inspector Angula Amulungu, said on Monday that the investigation of the disappearance of the money was still going on.The money was supposed to be used as an exhibit in a case in which a Chinese national was charged with contravening the Exchange Control Regulations when he allegedly tried to leave Namibia through Hosea Kutako International airport on November 14 2007 with US$431 492 in his luggage.The money was taken to the Katutura court building in February, the Police have stated earlier. At one of the court’s administrative offices, the money was booked in as an exhibit that was to be used in Chinese national Jianguo Chen’s case in the Windhoek Regional Court, where Jianguo in October last year pleaded guilty to five charges, including three counts of bribery, a charge under the Exchange Control Regulations, and another under the Customs and Excise Act.By mid-April, however, it was discovered that the money was missing. By then, the foreign currency was worth some N$3,86 million.According to Amulungu, the Police’s docket on the investigation of the disappearance of the cash has been submitted to the Office of the Prosecutor General, which is providing guidance on the investigation. The police have been receiving further instructions from the Office of the Prosecutor General, and have been following up on these as the investigations continue, with no arrests yet made, Amulungu said.The Chief Magistrate for the Windhoek District, Rina Horn, also said on Tuesday that her office is still waiting for the police’s investigation to be wrapped up. A departmental investigation is also in progress, and the outcome of this probe is similarly being awaited before any possible steps might be taken against staff members at the court, she said.