Criminal Assets Recovery Fund fails to account for over N$1 million

By Erasmus Shalihaxwe

THE management of the Criminal Assets Recovery Fund, which falls under the Ministry of Justice, has failed to explain why a total of N$1 122 000 generated from the auctioned forfeited assets was not deposited into the Funds account as per the Treasury Approval Act.

This was revealed by the Auditor General’s findings on the financial dealing of the Criminal Assets Recovery Fund 2022 financial report.

The Fund, tasked with combating organised crime, focuses on the prohibition of money laundering, recovery of the proceeds of unlawful activities, the forfeiture of assets that have been used to commit an offence, or assets that are the proceeds of illegal activities, among its various activities.

The recently released auditor general’s report states that proceeds generated from the auction of forfeited vehicles amounting to N$1 122 000, which took place on 28 October 2021 and 4 November 2021, were not deposited into the fund account, and the Fund’s accounting officer and management failed to provide explanations to auditors during an audit.

“Treasury approval 20/11/1/05 stipulates that all income derived from the asset auctions must be deposited into the Criminal Assets Recovery Fund notice account. However, the audit found that the proceeds generated from the auction of forfeited assets amounting to N$1 122 000, which took place on 28 October 2021 and 4 November 2021, were not deposited into the fund account, contrary to the Treasury approval 20/11/1/05. It is recommended that the accounting officer should ensure that the proceeds from the auctions are deposited in the Criminal Assets Recovery Fund Notice Account. The accounting officer provided no comment,” reads the report.

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