Cashgate Convicts Namata gets 8 years, Kasamba gets 4 years

Cashgate Convicts Namata gets 8 years, Kasamba gets 4 years

The High Court in Lilongwe has given two Cash gate convicts Maxwell Namata and Luke Kasamba custodial sentences despite returning the stolen money.

Judge Justice Anabel Mtalimanja has sentenced Namata to eight years imprisonment with hard labour and co-accused  Kasamba has been sentenced to four years imprisonment with hard labour.

Namata and Kasamba were convicted after being found guilty to encashment of two government cheques totaling K24.1million through Cross Marketing Limited, a company  owned by Kasamba.

The two through lawyer Raphael Kasambara told the court during sentencing submissions that they have made a restitution of the money they defrauded government. Namata resituated K14 million in cash while Kasamba returned K4 million and a truck valued by

defence at K9 million.

Namata and Kasamba are the fourth convicted cashgate convicts to get custodial sentences since commencement of cash gate prosecution.

Cash gate Suspect Namata Wants to Restitute money

Cash gate Suspect Namata Wants to Restitute money

The convicted Maxwell Namata in a case of theft and money laundering of up to K24.1 million is in a process of giving back the stolen money.

The Lilongwe High Court on Wednesday 21 January found guilty two Cashgate suspects Maxwell Namata guilty of money laundering and theft of K14.4 million from the said K24.1 million and co-accused Luke Kasamba was found guilty of laundering the full K24.1 million.

Lawyer for Namata Wapona Kita who was on Monday supposed to present defense submissions on sentencing, told the court that "There are some facts not ready with us" and asked for 10 days to submit them.

But the High Court judge Justice Anabel Mtalimanja gave the defense two days and adjourned the matter to Wednesday 4th February, for the defense to submit their prepared documents. The judge said 10 more days would be a torture to the convicts currently spending their time pending sentence at Maula prison.

Outside the court when Kita was asked reasons for asking the court for time, revealed "We want to restitute the money" which the accused is alleged to have stolen.

He said when the defense would be arguing on leniency on sentence for the accused, they want to make submissions with some receipts as evidence that apart from being a first time offender Namata has also shown sign of remorse by restituting the money.

He however mentioned that with time given if the restitution process fails the defense will stick to readily arguments.

According to the evidence provided in the court during previous trials, the two defrauded public money through cheques the ministry of tourism issued two times yet the recipients did not supplying any service. The two cheques were deposited into Cross Marketing Limited bank account. Maxwell Namata for two times deposited Cheque amounting to K9.7 Million and K14.4 million got from Ministry of Tourism into Cross Marketing Limited bank account and Luke Kasamba a manager for the company was responsible for the withdrawal of the deposited money and handed it over to Namata.