Renowned gospel artist and motivational speaker Naftalie Shigwedha Amukwelele, popularly known as D-Naff, has spoken out following his arrest on multiple charges of fraud last week.
The award-winning singer was arrested in Windhoek on Friday and charged with three counts of forgery and three counts of uttering forged documents.
He appeared before Magistrate Jurina |Hochobes in the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court, where he was granted bail of N$5 000.
His next court appearance is scheduled for 18 November.
Speaking on Fresh FM, D-Naff said he was “caught up in a story that’s not mine”.
He said his arrest stemmed from an innocent attempt to help a friend with the Namibia Revenue Agency (NamRA) paperwork.
“What happened is that a friend of mine, who is a businessman based in Oranjemund, asked me to help him find someone who could assist with his documents at NamRA.
NamRA has introduced new regulations requiring business owners, including musicians, to be tax compliant. My friend needed an agent to handle his papers since he doesn’t live in Windhoek,” he stated.
D-Naff said he connected his friend to two agents he knew.
After the agents completed the paperwork and were paid, everything seemed fine until his friend was arrested two weeks later for allegedly possessing forged documents.
“My friend called me, saying he had been arrested because of the certificate they gave him. When I contacted the agents, they insisted the documents were real. Later, NamRA called me in for questioning,” he narrated.
He added that the incident has nothing to do with his employer, the home affairs ministry.
“I saw comments on social media linking this to my job at home affairs. That’s not true – this is a NamRA matter,” he clarified.
D-Naff said, when he was summoned again last Friday, he was informed that he would be formally charged and police intended to detain him.
However, his lawyer Kadhila Amoomo arrived in time to secure bail arrangements.
The singer expressed disappointment that the media focused only on him despite others being involved.
“As soon as I went for my bail hearing, the media was already there – cameras everywhere. I felt like I was being targeted because I was the only one mentioned in the reports,” he said.
D-Naff remains confident that the truth will come out in court.
“I just wanted to help a friend. I had no intention to do anything wrong. I believe justice will prevail,” he said.