Namibian theft suspect questioned by Hawks, moved to another prison

Namibian national Urbanus Shaumbwako, one of the suspects named in the scandal surrounding the theft of foreign currency from President Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm two years ago, has been questioned by the Hawks. Shaumbwako was being held at Pollsmoor Prison on unrelated charges of reckless driving and the possession of 12 firearms belonging to the Namibian police. He has since been transferred to another facility.

This revelation by Shaumbwako’s lawyer, Reon Heckrath, comes after Cape Town Regional Court magistrate Vanja Botha on Thursday 8 December denied him access to the Hawks interrogation and Phala Phala file.

Shaumbwako briefly appeared in the Cape Town Regional Court on a count of reckless driving and possession of 12 firearms which allegedly belong to the Namibian police. He was brought into court by a heavily armed police tactical response team and whisked away immediately afterwards.

Shaumbwako has been behind bars since his arrest on 18 October 2020. He is one of the men former spy boss Arthur Fraser named as being involved in the 2020 Phala Phala robbery.

Magistrate Botha denied the defence’s request for access to the Phala Phala investigation and questioning by the Hawks, saying the State does not have the information relating to the Phala Phala investigation or Shaumbwako’s questioning at Pollsmoor, and the information is irrelevant to the current charges against Shaumbwako.

“In June this year my client was visited by members of the Hawks and an investigating officer while in custody and questioned about the Phala Phala case and to confirm aspects in the Arthur Fraser affidavit, ” Heckrath told Daily Maverick.

Heckrath found it strange that the Hawks questioned his client about the Phala Phala robbery even though he had not been charged in the matter.

“My client has also been transferred to a different correctional facility… being treated as a high-profiler, with heavy security and isolation. I believe the order to remove my client came from the top at Pollsmoor Prison,” he said.

Visit Daily Maverick’s home page for more news, analysis and investigations

Information obtained by amaBhungane points to a cover-up of the 2020 theft of a disputed amount of US currency from President Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala game farm in Limpopo.

Arthur Fraser lifted the lid on the scandal when he took the “unprecedented” step of opening a criminal case against Ramaphosa.

The Namibian connection in the robbery was also exposed. Namibian police confirmed meeting their South African counterparts in June 2020 at the border to share “operational information” relating to Imanuwela David and other Namibian nationals suspected of stealing money in South Africa and fleeing to Namibia.

Fraser claimed the suspects were caught, kidnapped and interrogated, and said he believed crimes of defeating the ends of justice, kidnapping and money laundering were committed. He also alleged Ramaphosa paid hush money to the suspects — including his domestic workers. The revelations sparked calls for Ramaphosa to step down as President.

Hitting back at the allegations, Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya confirmed that the President had reported the robbery to the head of the Presidential Protection Unit, Major General Wally Rhoode.

The Presidency has since conceded that Rhoode did not register a theft case with the police.

The recent Section 89 panel appointed by Parliament found that Ramaphosa had a potential impeachment case to answer over serious violations of the Constitution for exposing himself to a potential conflict of interest by performing outside paid work and for possibly contravening the Prevention of Corrupt Activities Act.

The President has told MPs that the Phala Phala dollars came from animal sales, not money laundering.

Read more in Daily Maverick: “Report handover to Parliament — Ramaphosa denies Constitution violations, Arthur Fraser’s allegations”

Meanwhile, Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Thandi Mbambo, commenting on the questioning of Shaumbwako at Pollsmoor, said: “To protect the integrity of our investigations we are not at liberty to disclose who we interview or consult with during any ongoing investigation.”

The Department of Correctional Services did not respond to questions about Shaumbwako’s relocation to another facility. The case against the Namibian has been postponed to 6 March 2023. DM