Africa-Press – Namibia. A LEGAL practitioner representing veteran lawyer Arumugam Thambapilai, who on Friday received an effective prison term of six years for defrauding the Motor Vehicle Accident Fund of Namibia, has given notice that Thambapilai plans to appeal against his sentence.
Defence lawyer Francois Bangamwabo filed an appeal notice at the Windhoek High Court hours after acting judge Alvin Simpson sentenced the 77-year-old Thambapilai to 10 years’ imprisonment, of which four years were suspended for a period of five years, on four counts of fraud, charges of forgery and uttering, and a count of attempting to defeat or obstruct the course of justice.
Thambapilai would have to first obtain leave to appeal against his sentence before an appeal would make its way to the Supreme Court.
Simpson also sentenced two former clients of Thambapilai’s law firm, which was based at Ondangwa, and an ex-police officer in connection with their involvement in fraudulent claims submitted to the MVA Fund through the law firm.
Namibian Defence Force major Linda Shipalanga and business owner Festus Shindume were each sentenced to an effective prison term of four years.
A former police officer, Onesmus Sheehama, who fabricated a road accident report that was used in support of a fraudulent MVA Fund claim of N$2,8 million, was sentenced to pay a fine of N$40 000 or serve a jail term of four years.
Thambapilai was first arrested and charged with alleged fraud committed with claims submitted to the MVA Fund in December 2005.
He and 10 co-accused went on trial in the High Court in August 2010. The charges they faced were based on allegations that Thambapilai had lodged fraudulent claims with the MVA Fund on behalf of clients of his law firm between June 2000 and September 2005.
After a prolonged and repeatedly postponed trial, Simpson found Thambapilai and four co-accused still in the dock with him at that stage not guilty on all charges in December 2015.
The state appealed against that verdict, and in October last year the Supreme Court overturned the acquittals, replaced it with convictions and referred the matter back to the High Court for sentencing.
The Supreme Court found that Shipalanga had been involved in a fraudulent claim in an amount of N$270 000, which the MVA Fund paid out after her husband had died in a road accident. In the claim submitted to the MVA Fund it was falsely stated that Shipalanga was an unemployed housewife, while she was in fact employed by the Ministry of Defence.
The appeal court also found that evidence before the trial court showed Shindume had committed fraud involving an amount of N$75 900, which the MVA Fund paid out on a claim after the claimant had died and her sister had been used as a replacement to pretend to be the claimant and accept the payout from the road accident fund.
During the trial, Thambapilai said he relied on information given to him by clients when he prepared claims against the MVA Fund following road accidents.
The appeal court found that Thambapilai had been correctly acquitted on some of the charges he faced, but that on other charges it had been shown he had been aware that misrepresentations had been made to the MVA Fund in claims prepared by his law firm.
Simpson noted during the sentencing that Thambapilai informed the court he had health problems, such as a heart condition and diabetes.
The judge added, though, that given the seriousness of the offences committed and the fact that the fraud involved public funds, the court was left with no other option but to impose a sentence of direct imprisonment.
The state was represented by deputy prosecutor general Ed Marondedze.
Defence lawyers Elia Shikongo and Trevor Brockerhoff represented Shipalanga and Shindume respectively, while senior counsel Ishmael Semenya, instructed by Shikongo, represented Sheehama.
For More News And Analysis About Namibia Follow Africa-Press
