Fishrot asset war

JEMIMA BEUKES and MATHIAS HAUFIKU At least 23 vehicles worth N$24 million - bought in the span of six years - are the subject of a court battle between the country’s biggest commercial bank and the prosecutor general.The fleet, bought between 2013 and 2019, belongs to the Hatuikulipi cousins, Tamson and James, former minister Sacky Shanghala and Ricardo Gustavo.First National Bank (FNB) Namibia is fighting tooth and nail to stop prosecutor general Martha Imalwa from selling FNB-financed properties - including houses and cars - owned by some of the Fishrot-accused persons.Namibian Sun has seen court documents filed earlier this week related to the case that show how the four went on a car shopping spree between 2013 and 2019.During that period, Tamson bought 13 cars valued at N$14 million, James seven (N$7.5 million), Shanghala two (N$2.5 million) and Gustavo one (N$505 000).The information about their fleet came to light after the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) summoned major local car dealerships such as M&Z Motors, Jaguar Land Rover and Pupkewitz Toyota to reveal information related to vehicles bought by the alleged Fishrot kingpins and how the payments were made.Those close to them claim these are not the only vehicles bought by the quartet, currently incarcerated over their alleged role in the country’s biggest fisheries scandal through which they allegedly received bribes in excess of N$150 million.The Hatuikulipi cousins mostly bought their cars through their companies and trust entities.Million-dollar depositsThe exact details of how the me bought their luxurious fleet, as contained in Imalwa’s answering affidavit, explain how they would pay deposits to the tune of N$1.6 million cash to purchase the car of their dreams.It also details how Shanghala in October 2019 - while serving as attorney general at the time - bought a top of the range Range Rover and a Land Rover Discovery valued at N$2.4 million and N$742 000 respectively in the space of 10 days. He paid N$1.02 million cash for the Range Rover. His annual salary as attorney general at the time was around N$940 000.Tamson spent just over N$10 million between 2013 and 2018 for the purchase of five high-end Mercedes Benz cars. When he bought a Mercedes Benz E63 AMG in September 2018, he put down a deposit of N$1.6 million and the remaining amount was financed by Standard Bank Namibia.On 3 November 2017, he bought a Lexus 450 for N$1.5 million through his company TJH Trading CC. The car was registered in the name of his wife Johanna Ndapandula Hatuikulipi, the daughter of former fisheries minister Bernhardt Esau. N$150 000 was paid by his other company Erongo Clearing and Forwarding and the remaining N$1.35 million was paid from his personal FNB account.FNB legal advisor Taswald July has lashed out at Imalwa, accusing her of attaching bonded properties of the Fishrot bribery scandal accused.The bank claims Gustavo and Tamson, through his company JTH Trading, owe FNB at least N$5.3 million combined for home and car loans.Tamson has assets valued at N$2.6 million still tied to the bank, while Gustavo owes N$2.7 million.The bank fears that it might lose out if the PG goes ahead and sell the properties and maintains it has a preferent right over the mortgages registered over each of the immovable properties and also holds ownership of the vehicles until payment is concluded in full.The PG, however, maintains that FNB has nothing to fear because the Prevention of Organised Crime ACT (POCA) provides sufficient mechanisms to protect the interests of the bank.Imalwa also questioned the bank’s “checks and balances” after learning that Tamson’s FNB-financed vehicles are registered in his name and not in that of JTH Trading, which was paying for the vehicles.She also said FNB should have picked up that Tamson was a politically exposed person.This after the bank said in its founding affidavit that “these assets did not appear to have anything to do with unlawful activities”.Uphill battleJuly, in his affidavit filed at the beginning of April, said the bank did not suspect or have any reason to suspect that these assets or payments made to FNB could have been from funds from criminal activity when it advanced the loans for the acquisition and payments of the assets.He also said the PG’s restraint order was not served on FNB by the sheriff or his deputy as is accustomed, nor was the schedule of properties attached which included a list of FNB-bonded assets.“If the criminal trial is long dragged out and the clients fail to meet their payment obligations, FNB might be unable to commence proceedings to obtain payments,” he said.He added that although there is some built-in protection given to FNB in consultations provisions, the restraint order currently allows for the sale of FNB secured assets without protecting the bank’s interests in those assets.According July, the absence of the schedule of assets - which was also not available on e-justice - rendered the restraint order invalid, adding that the PG should have known that FNB had interests in some of these immovable properties.jemima@namibiansun.com

Fishrot asset war

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Namibian Sun 2025-09-11

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Fishrot asset war

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Namibian Sun 2025-09-11

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