A Former financial manager of Windhoek International School was found guilty on 18 charges of fraud, involving a total amount of N$3.38 million, and a count of money laundering in the Windhoek High Court yesterday.
Acting judge Makapa Simasiku convicted Maria Coetzee (53) in connection with a series of payments that she made or attempted to make from a Windhoek International School bank account, where she was employed as a financial manager, to her own bank accounts.
The fraudulent transactions took place between March and October 2018, and were discovered by the school board’s treasurer in October 2018.
Coetzee pleaded guilty to eight charges of fraud and five counts of attempted theft at the start of her trial in May this year, but Simasiku recorded pleas of not guilty on all charges after hearing Coetzee’s plea explanation.
The judge also directed that Coetzee had to go through a period of psychiatric observation to determine if she was fit to stand trial and could be held criminally liable for her alleged actions regarding the charges she faced.
After the period of psychiatric observation, the court was informed that Coetzee had been found fit to stand trial and could be held accountable for her alleged actions.
Coetzee informed the court in her plea explanation that she had mental ailments in the form of post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar depression and anxiety, and that she had become addicted to online gambling as well.
“I personally gambled and lost the majority of the money that was transferred to my personal bank accounts,” she stated.
Coetzee admitted that she defrauded the school on eight occasions by transferring money from the school’s bank account to two accounts of her own.
With those eight transactions, a total amount of about N$1.9 million was transferred to her accounts.
She also admitted that in May 2018 she tried to steal about N$77 300 from the school.
After preparing to have the money transferred electronically to her own bank account, however, she felt guilt-ridden and approached the school’s principal to ask him not to release the payments she had prepared, Coetzee said in her plea explanation.
The state alleged that Coetzee transferred and attempted to transfer a total amount of about N$3.38 million from the school’s bank account to her own accounts.
Simasiku found that it was proven that Coetzee transferred a total amount of N$2.8 million from the school’s bank account to her own accounts, and also tried to transfer N$567 532 to her own accounts.
He noted that when she was confronted about transfers of money from the school’s account in October 2018, she admitted responsibility.
She later also sent an email message to the school’s principal in which she admitted that she had stolen about N$2.8 million from the school.
Coetzee told the principal she had spent about N$2.5 on her addiction to gambling.
She added in one email message: “I knew it was wrong, every time I took money – I knew.”
Coetzee, who is being held in custody, has to return to court for a presentence hearing on Wednesday next week.
She is being represented by defence lawyer Janita von Wielligh.
Deputy prosecutor general Tangeni Iitula is representing the state.
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