Nuusita Ashipala

A Nampost employee at Omuthiya has been placed on suspension following allegations of fraud. The employee is alleged to have withdrawn close to N$300 000 from customers’ accounts at the branch. The suspect is employed on contract at the branch. “Unfortunately, we can confirm the allegations are true; the respective staff member is currently on suspension until such time that the internal investigation has been finalised,” the executive for marketing, business development and communication, Berlindi van Eck said.

According to Van Eck, the incident was reported to the forensic division on 6 August 2021 and the investigation is underway. Van Eck further said Nampost cannot at this stage disclose the amount of the fraudulent withdrawals. “As not to compromise the investigation, we can’t disclose the exact amount and dates of the fraudulent withdrawals at this stage as the incident is still being scrutinised,” said Van Eck.

New Era understands the employee withdrew more than N$200 000 from a single investment account. She is further alleged to have withdrawn an unknown amount from other customers’ accounts. According to sources close to the investigation, the dubious transactions were detected by the Nampost forensic department, which prompted the institution to suspend the employee.

Nampost assured its customers that what transpired at Omuthiya is not a syndicate and stressed that swift measures were taken against the employee. She further said that the company has measures in place to deal with incidences of such nature. No criminal case has been opened yet.

-nashipala@nepc.com.na