The curious case of the missing N$1,1m bank loot

WITH the N$1,1 million stolen from Standard Bank’s Arandis branch still missing, an alleged witch doctor has taken centre stage in the bail hearing of one of the suspects.

The loot remains unrecovered despite two key suspects being arrested three months ago. They remain in custody.

During the bail application of one of the suspects, Amalia Akwaake, the following possibilities came to light: Either the money is in a bag which was dropped near a tree 70 km from Omuthiya, or an alleged witch doctor called ‘Mama Lala’ has it, or it ended up in the hands of a possible syndicate.

It is also possible that a member of the syndicate, Mama Lala, who is pretending to be a witch doctor, waited for the suspect to drop the money exactly where they wanted to claim it as loot.

Akwaake, a resident of Ondangwa, was arrested on 18 May, about two weeks after Arandis bank manager Engelborg Strauss was arrested.

Both are implicated in the theft of more than a million dollars from the bank.

Preliminary indications were that Strauss allegedly took N$800 000 from the bank’s safe and gave it to an unknown person who waited at the Arandis turn-off on the B2 highway.

Later that day, the unknown person allegedly directed her to deposit an additional N$306 000 into a Bank Windhoek account, details of which were sent to her via SMS.

Strauss allegedly made the deposit.

Akwaake allegedly withdrew the money from the Bank Windhoek branch at Oshakati, believing it was part of a plan by Mama Lala to help her (Akwaake) get rid of bad luck.

As for the N$800 000, although state prosecutor Johannes Shengadi indicated that MTC records suggest Akwaake was involved in orchestrating the theft, Akwaake denied being involved with its disappearance.

This may be uncovered by forensic findings later, or when Strauss eventually testifies.

Akwaake did admit drawing the N$306 000 though, and being directed by Mama Lala to drop it under a tree and walk away, never to look back even once lest the bad luck haunting her should ever return.

She claimed that was the last time she saw the money.

She even claimed she took the police to the spot where she allegedly dropped the loot, but according to a police witness the place she took them to did not match the place she described.

One of the grounds on which the state is opposing bail is that Akwaake, once released if granted, would further dispose of the money because only she knows where it is.

Police investigators have the same concern.

Akwaake vowed she would not do that.

She believes the money could have been stolen – again (this time by Mama Lala), whom she eventually suspected to have hoodwinked her, which is why she opened a case against the alleged witch doctor a day before she (Akwaake) was arrested.

Shengadi suspects the case opened against Mama Lala was an attempt to divert the attention from her, as he suspects Akwaake may be Mama Lala.

Her defence attorney, Nathan Little, believes there is reason to believe that Mama Lala and/or a syndicate are in fact major players in the theft, and that the police need to find out about the progress in Akwaake’s case against the witch doctor.

Little said it should be determined whether forensic findings of mobile phone communications do not involve other parties.

Akwaake’s application continues this week in the Swakopmund Magistrate’s Court.

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