Namibia diamond company suspends top executives after N$350-million heist

Namib Desert Diamonds’ board has suspended the company’s chief executive and two other top management members.

Chief executive officer (CEO) Alisa Amupolo, chief operations officer Uahoroka Kauta, and security manager Paulinus Sheyapo were suspended for ignoring an earlier police warning about a possible robbery.

The robbery eventually took place on 18 January, which saw the company losing diamonds worth about N$350 million.

The Namib Desert Diamonds (Namdia) board, which is chaired by Justus Hausiku, in a statement released yesterday, said Lelly Usiku has now been appointed as interim CEO.

This is to ensure business continuity and that all mandates are delivered with excellence, it said.

Usiku, an economist and experienced executive at Namdia, has acted in the role of CEO before.

“As part of the ongoing recovery process following the robbery, Namdia is conducting a comprehensive and robust internal investigation to determine the sequence of events leading up to the crime and to prevent any future attempt to breach security,” the board said.

The heist claimed the lives of Namdia security chief Francis Eiseb and suspect Max Endjala, while more suspects are currently said to be on the run and two are in police custody.

A formal police docket has been registered, involving charges of armed robbery with aggravating circumstances and murder.

Two suspects, Sam Shololo (45) and Joel Angula (45) have appeared in court and remain in police custody.

“We assure you the decision to suspend these team members was not taken lightly. However, the investigation and recovery processes must now run its course,” the board said.

The board further said it has no reason to suspect any Namdia employees, apart from the suspect already in custody.

It stated that the Namdia board has decided to take a precautionary step in the business’ best interests, as well as to protect the integrity of both the executives and the investigation.

The board said it wants the investigation and recovery process to be concluded as quickly as possible.

“We believe this is the right decision in the circumstances and will prevent any questions being asked about the independence or integrity of the process once it is complete,” it said.

The Issue earlier reported that Namdia was last year warned about being a target for a potential heist.

Police deputy inspector general for operations Elias Mutota has told The Issue the police late last year alerted Namdia about what appeared to have been an imminent heist.

“We had a meeting with them and warned them that we have information about a planned heist. We informed them to be vigilant and upgrade their security,” he said.

Mutota said he cannot speak on behalf of Namdia and could not respond to whether the parastatal did indeed upgrade its security in anticipation of the robbery.

Rui Tyitende, a public policy analyst, says the suspension of the Namdia management is long overdue.

“How do we explain that critical natural resources to the tune of billions of dollars were being guarded as if they were potatoes that were being stored in that building or matangara (offal)?” he says.

He says it shows there were serious security lapses by Namdia’s management and the public perception exists that this was an inside job.

Tyitende questions to what extent the top management was involved or perceived to be involved.

He also questions the reasons for the suspension, arguing why this only happened now.

“I think the suspension is long overdue, but it raises a more fundamental question when it comes to corporate governance in this country,” he says.

Tyitende says accountability seems to be a challenge.

“As a country, we do not follow the provisions of the Public Enterprises Act, and that’s a serious issue.

“There are so many cases where state institutions do as they please.

The question is: What led to their establishment?”