A claim that a plan to help one of the accused in the Namcor fraud and corruption case, former Namcor manager Cedric Willemse, escape has been watered down to no more than a suspicion.
The claim about an escape plan got diluted as Willemse’s bail hearing continued in the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court yesterday.
The leader of Willemse’s team of defence lawyers, Boris Isaacks, questioned Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) investigator Oberty Inambao about the alleged escape plan, on which public prosecutor Basson Lilungwe questioned Willemse on Friday last week.
“Did Mr Willemse try to escape?” Isaacks asked.
Inambao answered that he did not say earlier in his testimony that Willemse tried to escape, but said it was believed the chances of Willemse escaping were high when he was transported from Windhoek Correctional Facility to hospital for medical treatment on 11 July, which was three days after his arrest.
“This was a suspicion,” Inambao said.
Lilungwe put it to Willemse last week that when he was transported from the prison to hospital, a police reservist described as “a close friend” of former Namcor managing director Imms Mulunga, who is also one of the accused in the case in which Willemse is charged, followed the vehicle in which Willemse was.
Lilungwe also related that the reservist was going to facilitate Willemse’s escape from the hospital, and was ordered to leave the hospital because of his friendship with Mulunga.
However, Inambao told magistrate Olga Muharukua the vehicle of the alleged police reservist was stopped at the gate of the prison and that ACC officers then escorted Willemse to hospital.
During his testimony on Tuesday, Inambao said he went to the prison after receiving information that Willemse was being transported to hospital in a private car.
He said his main fear at that stage was that Willemse’s medical condition was self-induced because he had failed to take his diabetes medication.
“We were on alert to make sure Mr Willemse does not escape,” he said.
Willemse has told the court he was taken to hospital because his blood-sugar level had spiked after he was not allowed to take his required medication.
In his testimony yesterday, Inambao also said the fuel firm Erongo Petroleum ran up debt totalling N$238 million with Namcor from September 2022 to May 2023.
The debt was accumulated despite Erongo Petroleum having a credit limit of N$10 million with the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia, Inambao said.
He has alleged that Willemse approved the supply of fuel by Namcor to Erongo Petroleum even though the firm exceeded its credit limit by far.
Erongo Petroleum’s account with Namcor was in credit, meaning the close corporation did not owe money to the state-owned Namcor, in November 2020 and in March, June and November 2021, before it started to accumulate debt from September 2022, the court heard.
Inambao claimed Willemse had a corrupt relationship with Erongo Petroleum and a related fuel company, Enercon Namibia, and received payments to approve the continued supply of fuel to the two entities despite them exceeding their credit limits with Namcor.
Inambao’s testimony was concluded yesterday.
Muharukua postponed the bail hearing to 7 October, when oral arguments are scheduled to be heard.
