Staff Reporter
Windhoek-A local businesswoman lost N$44,000 after a thief got into her car and took the money. In a similar incident a man was robbed of N$40,000 on his way to purchase a vehicle.
The local businesswoman, who requested anonymity, said she went to withdrew money from a bank in Ausspannplatz last Wednesday at around 15h00 and stopped at her shop along Independence Avenue to pick up a wedding dress before heading to Katutura to pay her employees.
The woman, who doubles as a fashion designer, said after she withdrew the money she went directly to her car and only stopped at her shop in Independence Avenue.
“I actually felt the money was safer if I hid the money under the car carpet than having it in my handbag. Someone can just grab the handbag and run. For some reason I thought, ‘let me hide the money under the carpet where the driver’s seat is’,” she recalled.
The woman said from the shop in town she drove to her studio in Katutura to drop off the wedding dress, but when she arrived at the studio, she looked under the carpet only to find that the money was gone.
“The car was not broken into. There were things in the boot and it wasn’t taken, only the money was missing. I think they intercepted the car’s alarm. If it was a normal thief they would have taken everything, so it’s somebody who followed me from the bank and their interest was just the money.
“So, I think they saw me hiding the money under the carpet. I guess it’s my fault, because if I knew there were people following me I would have done it differently,” she says.
She says she had to borrow money to pay her employees. “At the end of the day these women won’t understand that the money was stolen. If I don’t pay them they will run to the media.”
She further explained that she is working on a women empowerment project and these women do not have account details nor e-wallet and the only way to pay them is to withdraw the money and pay them in cash.
The woman further cautioned fellow businesspeople not to carry large amounts of money on them as their safety could be at risk.
City Police spokesperson Fabian Amukwelele confirmed the incident and said it could happen to anyone.
“Open your eyes, even when you are in the bank. Pay attention to detail. When you see someone who was in the bank outside going where you are going there is a possibility these people are following you,” he cautioned.
In a similar incident, he said, a man was robbed of N$40, 000 at the traffic lights on Eveline street recently while on his way to purchase a vehicle. Amukwelele said the man stopped at the junction when three men suddenly appeared, opened the door and grabbed the bag containing the money before absconding.