Girl arrested at Ovitoto for alleged theft and arson at multipurpose centre

Share This Article:

A 17-year-old girl was arrested on Monday in connection with theft and arson which took place on Saturday at the community multipurpose centre of the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (MICT) at Ovitoto.

Namibian Police Force (NamPol) spokesperson in the Otjozondjupa Region, Inspector Maureen Mbeha, in an interview with Nampa on Tuesday said she had first allegedly stolen a wifi router from the community centre.

“The router was that same Saturday evening allegedly found in her possession as she tried to sell it to a community member at Ovitoto,” Mbeha said.

Follow-ups were then launched by community members, who discovered that a public address system also from the multipurpose centre was missing, along with a diesel generator, cables, cameras and tripod, Mbeha noted.

Community members further discovered that a desk, a computer and its monitor were allegedly set on fire inside the building in an attempt to defeat the course of justice by destroying evidence, Mbeha added.

“The girl was a volunteer at the multipurpose centre, which was established by the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology in March this year,” said Mbeha.

The centre was equipped with 12 computers, a fax machine, photocopy machine, printer, public address system, internet, cameras and a generator for community use there.

Mbeha estimated the loss to be worth approximately N.dollars 123 000.

She stated that for now the community centre will remain closed pending police investigations.

“The suspect was charged on Tuesday and is expected to appear in the Okahandja Magistrate’s Court during this week on charges of theft and arson,” said Mbeha.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency