Uranium theft case postponed

ONE of the more prominent cases in the Swakopmund Magistrate’s Court – the Roessing uranium theft case – has been postponed once again.

Gerhard Karulab (49) appeared in court last Tuesday on a charge of theft and the illegal possession of uranium. He initially faced the charges with two other men, Frans Heiman (43) and Isaskar Doeseb (37).Heiman pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a fine of N$5 000 or 12 months’ imprisonment, while the charges against Doeseb were dropped.The case was then removed from the roll, after which Karulab was given a new case with the same charges.The reason for the postponement was that Karulab had failed to obtain legal representation, hence “wasting the time of the court, the witnesses and the other two accused”, in the words of Swakopmund Magistrate Gaynor Paulton.In a last warning, Paulton said that Karulab must have legal representation by May 2, or else he would have to defend himself.He did manage to get Advocate Kasuto from Windhoek to represent him at his scheduled appearance last week, and the case was postponed until August 8 for plea and trial.Karulab and the other two men were charged with the theft of 27,67 kg of uranium oxide, worth nearly N$5 500, from Roessing Uranium in 2004, which they allegedly stowed away at a house in Swakopmund.Although the amount was considered “insignificant” by Roessing Uranium, it did prompt the company to re-evaluate its security measures.After sentencing Heiman, Magistrate Paulson said that the motive of the theft was still unclear and she hoped that it would be made known during Karulab’s trial.He initially faced the charges with two other men, Frans Heiman (43) and Isaskar Doeseb (37).Heiman pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a fine of N$5 000 or 12 months’ imprisonment, while the charges against Doeseb were dropped.The case was then removed from the roll, after which Karulab was given a new case with the same charges.The reason for the postponement was that Karulab had failed to obtain legal representation, hence “wasting the time of the court, the witnesses and the other two accused”, in the words of Swakopmund Magistrate Gaynor Paulton.In a last warning, Paulton said that Karulab must have legal representation by May 2, or else he would have to defend himself.He did manage to get Advocate Kasuto from Windhoek to represent him at his scheduled appearance last week, and the case was postponed until August 8 for plea and trial.Karulab and the other two men were charged with the theft of 27,67 kg of uranium oxide, worth nearly N$5 500, from Roessing Uranium in 2004, which they allegedly stowed away at a house in Swakopmund.Although the amount was considered “insignificant” by Roessing Uranium, it did prompt the company to re-evaluate its security measures.After sentencing Heiman, Magistrate Paulson said that the motive of the theft was still unclear and she hoped that it would be made known during Karulab’s trial.