Comalie drugs case struck off court roll

The absence of a decision from the prosecutor general about the prosecution of National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (Namcor) board chairperson Jennifer Comalie saw the case in which Comalie was charged with dealing in drugs struck from the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court’s roll yesterday.

Magistrate Jozanne Klazen struck the case off the court roll after she refused to give the state another postponement to get the outstanding decision of the prosecutor general ready.

The case was postponed at the end of July for a decision by the prosecutor general on the prosecution of Comalie to be made.

Klazen made that postponement for the prosecutor general’s decision a final postponement for that purpose.

Comalie was arrested on 27 March, after 935 grams of cannabis, 60 crack cocaine ‘rocks’ and 10 grams of cocaine were allegedly found in her car, shortly before a Namcor board meeting was due to take place at the state-owned company’s head office in Windhoek.

The arrest took place amid reports of corporate conflict at Namcor, of which the managing director, Immanuel Mulunga, was suspended by the Namcor board of directors about a week after Comalie’s release on bail following her first court appearance.

With Comalie yesterday making her third court appearance after her arrest, public prosecutor Laura Mabuku informed the magistrate that the court’s control prosecutor asked the police to carry out more investigations after the case was postponed at the end of July.

Those investigations have been completed, and the control prosecutor has indicated the state would need another month for the prosecutor general’s decision on Comalie’s case to be made, Mabuku said.

The prosecutor general would have to decide whether Comalie will be prosecuted on the evidence collected by the police, on what charges she would have to stand trial if she is prosecuted, and in which court she would be tried.

Defence lawyer Florian Beukes opposed the request for another postponement of the case.

He told the magistrate that Comalie had to obtain private security for protection because of the risks associated with the matter, which he said has affected her emotionally.

Beukes said with the previous postponement of the case, the parties involved were informed the investigation of the matter had been completed, which turned out not to be a correct reflection of the situation.

Beukes added that the court and Comalie could not continue to wait for the prosecutor general’s decision to be made, and that the state can return to court with the case when it has its house in order.

Klazen said the postponement of two months previously given for the prosecutor general’s decision to be made was reasonable.

She could not find that a further postponement as requested by the state would be necessary, expedient or in the interest of justice, Klazen said, before refusing the postponement.

Comalie was granted bail in an amount of N$7 000 when she first appeared in court on 29 March.

The bail deposit should now be returned to the person who paid the bail amount, Klazen ordered after she struck the case from the roll.