Fishrot whistleblower 'poisoned'
While investigations are widening, the Icelandic whistleblower in the Fishrot bribery saga has had to endure physical and personal attacks, and says several incidents are being investigated by the Namibian police.
The whistleblower in the sensational Fishrot bribery saga, Jóhannes Stefánsson, says he has been poisoned on several occasions and twice needed as many as 13 bodyguards.
Stefánsson made these revelations on the RÚV's Kastljós television programme in Iceland last week to interviewer Einar Torsteinsson.
He said threats against him started immediately after he left the employment of Icelandic fishing company Samherji, which allegedly paid out hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes in Namibian officials and politicians.
Stefánsson left Samherji in July 2016 and went to South Africa, where the initial threats started.
“I have received lots of warnings since this started three years ago and attempts have been made to get to me with ill-intent, but I've been lucky enough to have good bodyguards,” Stefánsson said in the interview.
He said “strange people” had started coming into his life right after his departure from Samherji and there were rumours of people that were interested in his computer and data.
“It was just that I had good people around me and they intervened, because there was information coming through that not everything was quite right. Then I started noting strange things, as if I was being watched, and strange friends, a lot of interest in the computer, and so on,” Stefánsson said.
He said he had been poisoned through food and drink on more than one occasion.
“Certainly, I was very ill and have been under medical observation since then,” he said.
Stefánsson said there are several incidents being investigated by the Namibian police.
He also said the Namibian police feel he has given them enough information to get on with their investigation.
“They started [with their investigations] in August 2018, when I went to their office when I was granted a meeting. And it has gone extremely well, in light of all the hindrances: you cannot trust just anybody. There are very strong powers fighting the investigation. A case like this would often never see the light of day,” Stefánsson said.
Apart from the physical threats to his person, there were also some very personal attacks to tarnish his image, but said he never regretted stepping forward and blowing the whistle.
“I was totally decided from the beginning. Though I did not decide to shine a light on the crimes of Samherji and the 'sharks' right away, the first steps were to shine a light on the crimes of Samherji against the quota holders they worked with. But it developed further when it became clearer and clearer to me what was going on and what had been going on and what I had become part of. So I have not regretted this,” he said.
The 'sharks' Stefánsson is referring to are former justice minister Sackey Shanghala, his business partners James Hatuikulipi and former fisheries minister Bernard Esau's son-in-law Tamson 'Fitty' Hatuikulipi that acted as the alleged masterminds and go-betweens in the bribery scandal.
About how the case is likely to develop here, in Iceland and elsewhere, Stefánsson said: “What I can say is that the investigations in Namibia are not about to stop and they also want all the money taken illegally out of the country and all the takings from the illegal quotas back. That is their right and these are large amounts. So now of course investigations have started in Norway, Iceland and Angola, so I think that will all help achieve results here.
Samherji internal investigation
Samherji last month announced that its CEO Thorsteinn Már Baldvinsson would step aside “for the time being”, pending an internal investigation into the company's subsidiaries' alleged wrongdoing in Namibia, after Stefánsson's massive exposé.
In the meantime, Björgólfur Jóhannsson is acting in the position.
The company said the internal investigation will be “full-force” and is being assisted by the Norwegians and international law firm Wikborg Rein. The outcomes are to be reported to the Samherji board of directors.
In December the acting CEO wrote in a letter to Samherji's employees that a “large part” of the accusations against the company are “unfounded”.
Jóhannsson wrote that 18 497 emails have been published from Stefánsson's mailbox from 2014 to 2016, claiming that Stefánsson had only released 42% of these to WikiLeaks.
This “cherry-picking” of emails, Jóhannsson suggested, is enough reason to doubt Stefánsson's allegations.
Stefánsson in his televised interview denied this, saying he has given all emails and related documents to Namibian investigators, the district prosecutor in Iceland, as well as WikiLeaks.
“More emails will be released and I think it would be good if Samherji showed some grit, by releasing all my emails to the district prosecutor right away from 2011, when I started working in Namibia,” Stefánsson said.
CATHERINE SASMAN
Stefánsson made these revelations on the RÚV's Kastljós television programme in Iceland last week to interviewer Einar Torsteinsson.
He said threats against him started immediately after he left the employment of Icelandic fishing company Samherji, which allegedly paid out hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes in Namibian officials and politicians.
Stefánsson left Samherji in July 2016 and went to South Africa, where the initial threats started.
“I have received lots of warnings since this started three years ago and attempts have been made to get to me with ill-intent, but I've been lucky enough to have good bodyguards,” Stefánsson said in the interview.
He said “strange people” had started coming into his life right after his departure from Samherji and there were rumours of people that were interested in his computer and data.
“It was just that I had good people around me and they intervened, because there was information coming through that not everything was quite right. Then I started noting strange things, as if I was being watched, and strange friends, a lot of interest in the computer, and so on,” Stefánsson said.
He said he had been poisoned through food and drink on more than one occasion.
“Certainly, I was very ill and have been under medical observation since then,” he said.
Stefánsson said there are several incidents being investigated by the Namibian police.
He also said the Namibian police feel he has given them enough information to get on with their investigation.
“They started [with their investigations] in August 2018, when I went to their office when I was granted a meeting. And it has gone extremely well, in light of all the hindrances: you cannot trust just anybody. There are very strong powers fighting the investigation. A case like this would often never see the light of day,” Stefánsson said.
Apart from the physical threats to his person, there were also some very personal attacks to tarnish his image, but said he never regretted stepping forward and blowing the whistle.
“I was totally decided from the beginning. Though I did not decide to shine a light on the crimes of Samherji and the 'sharks' right away, the first steps were to shine a light on the crimes of Samherji against the quota holders they worked with. But it developed further when it became clearer and clearer to me what was going on and what had been going on and what I had become part of. So I have not regretted this,” he said.
The 'sharks' Stefánsson is referring to are former justice minister Sackey Shanghala, his business partners James Hatuikulipi and former fisheries minister Bernard Esau's son-in-law Tamson 'Fitty' Hatuikulipi that acted as the alleged masterminds and go-betweens in the bribery scandal.
About how the case is likely to develop here, in Iceland and elsewhere, Stefánsson said: “What I can say is that the investigations in Namibia are not about to stop and they also want all the money taken illegally out of the country and all the takings from the illegal quotas back. That is their right and these are large amounts. So now of course investigations have started in Norway, Iceland and Angola, so I think that will all help achieve results here.
Samherji internal investigation
Samherji last month announced that its CEO Thorsteinn Már Baldvinsson would step aside “for the time being”, pending an internal investigation into the company's subsidiaries' alleged wrongdoing in Namibia, after Stefánsson's massive exposé.
In the meantime, Björgólfur Jóhannsson is acting in the position.
The company said the internal investigation will be “full-force” and is being assisted by the Norwegians and international law firm Wikborg Rein. The outcomes are to be reported to the Samherji board of directors.
In December the acting CEO wrote in a letter to Samherji's employees that a “large part” of the accusations against the company are “unfounded”.
Jóhannsson wrote that 18 497 emails have been published from Stefánsson's mailbox from 2014 to 2016, claiming that Stefánsson had only released 42% of these to WikiLeaks.
This “cherry-picking” of emails, Jóhannsson suggested, is enough reason to doubt Stefánsson's allegations.
Stefánsson in his televised interview denied this, saying he has given all emails and related documents to Namibian investigators, the district prosecutor in Iceland, as well as WikiLeaks.
“More emails will be released and I think it would be good if Samherji showed some grit, by releasing all my emails to the district prosecutor right away from 2011, when I started working in Namibia,” Stefánsson said.
CATHERINE SASMAN
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