Rogue car dealer’s appeal against sentence fails

Walvis Bay resident Cevin Harding's High Court appeal to have his 10-year prison sentence reduced to a two-and-a-half-year prison term has failed. "Undoubtedly, [Cevin Harding] committed these crimes against the general public. Innocent members of the public trusted him and his business, and he exploited that trust," High Court judge Claudia Claasen said in the ruling in which she dismissed Harding's appeal against his sentencing.Harding was sentenced to 10 years in prison on 15 June 2023 after being found guilty of five charges of theft and one charge of money laundering.Over a period of three years, Harding sold five people's vehicles as part of his business but never paid them the money—totalling over N$1 million – instead using it for his own gain.“They entrusted the appellant with their property and expected to receive their money once their vehicles were sold. This did not happen. These people were left to bear the consequences and suffered financial losses. The appellant did not compensate any of them,” reads the judgment delivered on Monday. Harding lodged his appeal with the High Court in Windhoek in July.Reaped benefits One of Harding’s grounds for appeal was that the magistrate in the Walvis Bay Magistrate’s Court – where he pleaded guilty and was subsequently sentenced – made an error by not considering that he did not personally benefit from the crime.He argued that the money was paid into an overdrawn account, which he claimed was the reason he could not repay the money.However, the court found that even considering this explanation, Harding still benefitted from the crime.“This means that his outstanding debt with the bank would have been reduced, which means he and his business benefitted from the transactions.”In Harding's appeal, he also argued that the magistrate should have considered a fine or at least a suspended sentence.The court determined that the severity of the offence and the public interest justified the sentence.“It happened repeatedly. In every case, during the three years, he had the opportunity to reconsider his ways, but he stuck to his fraudulent plan," the court found. – kristien@nmh-hub.com.na

Rogue car dealer’s appeal against sentence fails

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Namibian Sun 2025-11-04

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Rogue car dealer’s appeal against sentence fails

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Namibian Sun 2025-11-04

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