A man accused of defrauding the minister of defence, Frans Kapofi and a local hotel, denied the allegations against him.
On Monday, Owen Mahoto pleaded not guilty to two counts of fraud before Windhoek magistrate Kamboua Umunavi.
According to his lawyer Uejanaua Tjihumino, Mahoto will not furnish the court with any explanation.
“At this juncture, the accused person elects to remain silent and not incriminate himself. He puts the State to prove each allegation as depicted on the charge sheet. He will not disclose the basis of his defence at this stage,” said Tjihumino. He said Mahoto will only disclose his defence once the prosecutor general decides to prosecute him.
Mahoto’s preliminary plea and the summary of his docket will be forwarded to the prosecutor general who will decide whether or not to prosecute him and on which charges. Thus, the court postponed the matter to 2 June. The court also extended Mahoto’s N$5 000 bail bond. The State is alleging he pretended to be a bank official and informed Kapofi the bank detected suspicious transactions, where money was being deducted from his account – and in order to stop the deductions, he needed his banking details.
Mahoto then stole N$200 000 from Kapofi’s account. This incident took place on 24 August 2022.
In the second matter, where Mahoto is facing a charge of fraud with an alternative count of theft, the prosecution alleges he defrauded and stole N$22 271 from Windhoek-based Weinberg Hotel. It is alleged that on 19 August 2022, he led the hotel staff to believe he settled his bill through an electronic transfer by providing false proof of payment when he knew it was not a legitimate payment.
-mamakali@nepc.com.na