Supreme Court limits POCA seizures

The Supreme Court on Friday ruled to amend legislation regarding asset forfeitures acquired through crime so that it does not include legitimately acquired assets that were mixed with proceeds of crime.Chief justice Peter Shivute’s ruling on an appeal brought by the prosecutor general, the minister of justice, the attorney general, the director general of Namibia’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and the minister of finance was endorsed by deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb, as well as justices Elton Hoff and Theo Frank, while Justice Sylvester Mainga dissented.The appeal followed a victory for pensioners Martin and Hilma Shilengudwa in the High Court in August 2023. Judges Thomas Masuku, Herman Oosthuizen and Hannelie Prinsloo upheld their challenge against the constitutionality of Section 1 of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA).Due to the wording of the law, assets mixed with proceeds generated from unlawful activities could also be subject to seizure.The couple had asked the court to declare unconstitutional the definition of “proceeds of unlawful activities,” which includes “property that is mingled with property obtained through unlawful activity.”They argued that this definition had a crippling effect on lawfully obtained assets.This section of the legislation has now been definitively struck down and declared unconstitutional by the country’s highest court.Bipa property case The Shilengudwa couple continues to insist that they were unaware of and innocent of any wrongdoing regarding the Business and Intellectual Property Authority (Bipa)’s purchase of their Katutura property in 2017 for N$18 million. Since the market value of the property was reportedly only N$4.3 million, the prosecutor general is monitoring the relevant Bipa officials and seeking to seize the proceeds of the transaction.Masuku is expected to deliver judgment on 11 April on an application brought by prosecutor general Martha Imalwa on whether to seize Martin Shilengudwa’s bank accounts and investments, including the N$5 million that was already in his account and the previous value of his investments.Shilengudwa insists that the property where the popular nightclub Club Vaganza operated was worth even more than N$18 million and that he had previously received an offer of N$22 million from a diamond company. However, he rejected the offer because the Wanaheda restaurant, bar, gambling house and car wash provided the couple with a steady monthly income.According to his sworn statement, it was the persistent requests from Bipa’s then-chief executive, Tileinge Andima, that initially led to a lease agreement and later to the sale. Bipa established its Katutura branch on the premises.Along with Andima, Gabriel Sinimbo, the former executive director of industrialisation and trade, and Phillip Namundjebo, the then-acting chief executive of the Offshore Development Company (ODC), have also been named in the case, according to previous news reports.

Supreme Court limits POCA seizures

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-03

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Supreme Court limits POCA seizures

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-03

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