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Monday, 8 June 2026
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Monday, 8 June 2026
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Namibian press · Person

Pius Mwatelulo

Pius Mwatelulo — accused in the Fishrot fraud and corruption trial involving alleged N$300 million payments to favour Icelandic fishing company Samherji.

2024-05-292026-06-08
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What’s been said

Key points drawn from coverage. Tap a point to see the original sentence.

  1. April 2026

  2. The Namibian

    Pius Mwatelulo lodged an appeal against a Poca restraint order on his assets

    Source

    “An appeal of former attorney general and minister of justice Sacky Shanghala, James Hatuikulipi and Pius Mwatelulo against a Poca restraint order in respect of a wide range of assets belonging to them was dismissed in the Supreme Court in Windhoek on Thursday.”

    Fishrot accused lose Supreme Court challenge over seized assets

  3. The Namibian

    Pius Mwatelulo lost Supreme Court appeal against assets restraint order

    Source

    “The appeal of former attorney general and minister of justice Sacky Shanghala, James Hatuikulipi and Pius Mwatelulo was dismissed in the Supreme Court in Windhoek on Thursday.”

    Fishrot accused lose appeal against assets restraint order
  4. February 2026

  5. The Namibian

    Pius Mwatelulo was relocated from C section to Echo Unit at start of May

    Source

    “In a sworn statement filed in May last year, Hatuikulipi said he, Nghipunya, Shuudifonya, and Mwatelulo were relocated from C section to the Echo Unit – where they are held with the general population of awaiting-trial inmates – at the start of that month.”

    Judge affirms rights of detained Fishrot accused

  6. The Namibian

    Mwatelulo was relocated from C Section to Echo Unit at start of May

    Source

    “In a sworn statement filed at the court in May last year, Hatuikulipi said he, Nghipunya, Shuudifonya and Mwatelulo were relocated from C Section to Echo Unit, where they are held with the general population of awaiting-trial inmates, at the start of May last year.”

    Judge sets aside decision to move Fishrot accused in prison
  7. January 2026

  8. Informanté

    Pius Mwatelulo was absent from court due to hospitalisation

    Source

    “Two of the accused in the matter, Bernard Esau and Pius Mwatelulo, were, however, absent due to hospitalisation.”

    POSTPONED

  9. The Namibian

    Pius Mwatelulo is alleged to have pursued a tactical delaying strategy in the trial

    Source

    “None of the applications brought before the criminal court have been found to have any merit and it is difficult to find, when looking at the numerous civil applications that have simultaneously been filed, decided on and appealed against as well as the applications which are still pending, that there is not, at least to a degree, a tactical delaying strategy at play from the side of specifically [Shanghala, James Hatuikulipi and Pius Mwatelulo].”

    Shanghala and co‑accused delaying Fishrot trial, judge says
  10. June 2024

  11. The Namibian

    Pius Mwatelulo is a co-accused in the Fishrot case

    Source

    “The evidence consisted of bank cards issued to Hatuikulipi and a co-accused in the Fishrot case, Pius Mwatelulo, and also a handwritten document.”

    Hatuikulipi opts to stay silent in bribery trial
Politics

Esau's lawyer argues pre-trial detention is oppressive and unfair

The News

Lawyer Florian Beukes argued in High Court that his client Bernard Esau, 69, has experienced oppressive pre-trial incarceration after seven years in custody since his arrest in November 2019, citing exhausted defence funds and violation of constitutional rights to a speedy trial. Esau and nine co-accused, including former Justice Minister Sacky Shanghala, face 42 counts including corruption and racketeering over allegedly receiving N$300 million in payments to favour the Icelandic fishing company Samherji.

Why it matters

Esau defence argues seven years pre-trial detention violates constitutional rights in major corruption and racketeering case.

24 April 2026 · Informanté →

Friday 24 April

  1. Esau's lawyer argues pre-trial detention is oppressive and unfair

    Lawyer Florian Beukes argued in High Court that his client Bernard Esau, 69, has experienced oppressive pre-trial incarceration after seven years in custody since his arrest in November 2019, citing exhausted defence funds and violation of constitutional rights to a speedy trial. Esau and nine co-accused, including former Justice Minister Sacky Shanghala, face 42 counts including corruption and racketeering over allegedly receiving N$300 million in payments to favour the Icelandic fishing company Samherji.

    24 April 2026 · Informanté →

Friday 17 April

  1. Fishrot trial should proceed despite ongoing appeals, defence argues

    A defence lawyer representing one of ten accused in the Fishrot fraud and corruption trial has argued to the High Court that proceedings should continue while appeals against earlier rulings are pursued, citing delays since 2021 and the constitutional right to trial within a reasonable period. Other defence lawyers largely supported the argument, though one disagreed, and the judge is scheduled to hear further oral arguments on 24 April.

    17 April 2026 · The Namibian →

Thursday 16 April

  1. Fishrot trial postponed as recusal application stays proceedings

    The Fishrot case has been postponed to 24 April 2026 as former justice minister Sakeus Shanghala pursues leave to appeal a ruling dismissing his request for Judge Marelize du Plessis to recuse herself. Ricardo Gustavo's lawyer argues the repeated delays infringe the accused's right to a speedy trial and violate constitutional rights.

    16 April 2026 · New Era →

Tuesday 14 April

  1. Fishrot trial stalls as court grapples with legal procedure dispute

    Proceedings in the high-profile corruption trial of former justice minister Sacky Shanghala and others have stalled over a disagreement about which of two competing appeals applications should be heard first—a recusal challenge or a stay-of-proceedings request. The court has adjourned until 5 May 2026 to resolve the procedural impasse.

    14 April 2026 · New Era →

Wednesday 8 April

  1. Supreme Court upholds freeze on Fishrot corruption saga assets

    Namibia's Supreme Court has upheld a High Court order preventing those accused in the Fishrot corruption case from accessing forfeited assets, rejecting an appeal by former justice minister Sacky Shanghala, James Hatuikulipi and Pius Mwatelulo. The court found that the Anti-Corruption Commission had proper authority to conduct the investigation and that the restraint order remains valid pending the outcome of the criminal trial, which is scheduled to recommence in March 2026.

    8 April 2026 · New Era →

Tuesday 7 April

  1. Supreme Court upholds asset seizure in Fishrot corruption case

    Namibia's Supreme Court dismissed an appeal by three Fishrot accused—former attorney general Sacky Shanghala, James Hatuikulipi, and Pius Mwatelulo—challenging the prosecutor general's use of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act to seize their assets. The court upheld the High Court's restraint order covering bank funds, properties, vehicles, and luxury goods, finding that the prosecutor general may rely on Anti-Corruption Commission evidence rather than police investigations alone.

    7 April 2026 · The Namibian →

Friday 3 April

  1. Fishrot accused lose Supreme Court appeal on asset restraint

    Three accused in the Fishrot fraud case—former attorney general Sacky Shanghala, James Hatuikulipi, and Pius Mwatelulo—lost their Supreme Court appeal against an assets restraint order imposed under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act. The court upheld the High Court's 2023 confirmation of the restraint, which freezes assets including bank funds, property, vehicles, and luxury goods belonging to six of the accused, and ordered the three appellants to pay the prosecutor general's legal costs.

    3 April 2026 · The Namibian →

Wednesday 1 April

  1. Curators struggle to recover overseas assets in Fishrot scandal

    Government-appointed curators tasked with seizing assets linked to the Fishrot corruption scandal face legal hurdles and institutional delays in accessing foreign properties owned by suspects, with a February 2025 court order needed to extend seizure powers abroad. The curators report ongoing obstacles including uncooperative banks, missed meetings with defendants, and slow responses from financial institutions, hampering their efforts to catalogue and recover assets valued at over N$317 million.

    1 April 2026 · The Namibian →

Tuesday 10 March

  1. Fishrot defendant opposes co-accused recusal bid against judge

    Ricardo Gustavo, first accused in the Fishrot fraud and corruption case, says a recusal application by former attorney general Sacky Shanghala and James Hatuikulipi against acting judge Marilize du Plessis is intended to delay the trial. The judge is expected to rule on the recusal application on 23 March.

    10 March 2026 · The Namibian →

Sunday 1 March

  1. Prison seeks to move Fishrot accused to communal cells again

    The Namibian Correctional Service is attempting to relocate the four Fishrot-accused inmates from single cells to communal cells at Windhoek Correctional Facility, citing security and operational concerns. The move comes after a High Court judge recently ruled that a similar relocation was unlawful because the accused were not given a fair hearing, and the accused have warned they will return to court if the new notice proceeds.

    1 March 2026 · The Namibian →

Tuesday 17 February

  1. High Court sets aside prison relocation of Fishrot accused

    A Windhoek High Court judge has overturned a decision to move four Fishrot defendants from their designated section of Windhoek Correctional Facility, ruling that prison authorities failed to give them a hearing or explain the reasons for the move. The judge affirmed that the accused, who are presumed innocent, have the right to be heard before adverse decisions affecting them are made.

    17 February 2026 · The Namibian →

Saturday 14 February

  1. Judge sets aside prison relocation of four Fishrot accused

    A Windhoek High Court judge has set aside a decision by prison authorities to move four Fishrot fraud trial accused—James Hatuikulipi, Mike Nghipunya, Otneel Shuudifonya and Pius Mwatelulo—from C Section to Echo Unit, finding that the authorities failed to hear them or provide reasons for the relocation. The judge emphasised that trial-awaiting inmates are human beings whose rights must be respected under the rule of law.

    14 February 2026 · The Namibian →

Friday 13 February

  1. Gustavo opposes Shanghala's attempt to remove judge from Fishrot case

    Ricardo Gustavo's legal team says they will "oppose vehemently" an application by former attorney general Sacky Shanghala and co-accused James Hatuikulipi to have High Court judge Marilize du Plessis step down from the Fishrot fraud and corruption trial. Shanghala claims Du Plessis showed bias through remarks suggesting the accused were using delaying tactics, but the state is also opposing the recusal application, with arguments scheduled for 9 March.

    13 February 2026 · The Namibian →

Friday 6 February

  1. Accused seek judge's recusal in Fishrot corruption trial

    Former attorney general Sacky Shanghala and co-accused James Hatuikulipi have filed an application asking acting judge Marilize du Plessis to step down from their Fishrot fraud, corruption and racketeering trial, alleging bias and partiality. This is the third recusal application in the case; two previous judges turned down similar requests.

    6 February 2026 · The Namibian →

Wednesday 28 January

  1. Fishrot case postponed to February 2026 for legal aid representation

    The Fishrot case has been postponed to 4 February 2026 to arrange legal aid representation for Ricardo Gustavo's companies. Two accused, Bernard Esau and Pius Mwatelulo, were absent due to hospitalisation, and the matter was also postponed for the Court to explain Section 115 rights to unrepresented accused individuals.

    28 January 2026 · Informanté →

Tuesday 27 January

  1. Fugitive Fishrot lawyer sues over N$1.3 million pension seizure

    Marén de Klerk, a fugitive lawyer wanted in connection with the Fishrot fraud case, is challenging the Namibian Police's seizure of his N$1.3 million retirement annuity with Sanlam Namibia, arguing the seizure violates the Pension Funds Act and that pension benefits cannot be seized under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act.

    27 January 2026 · The Namibian →

Friday 23 January

  1. Judge finds Shanghala and co-accused delaying Fishrot trial

    Acting judge Marilize du Plessis ruled that former justice minister Sacky Shanghala and two co-accused have been using a strategy to delay their Fishrot fraud, corruption and racketeering trial, which has been pending since October 2021 without witness testimony yet beginning. Du Plessis rejected their postponement applications and ordered the trial to continue, though she granted a brief postponement to allow defence representation time to prepare.

    23 January 2026 · The Namibian →

Thursday 22 January

  1. Fishrot corruption trial set to begin March 9, 2026

    After nearly six years, the fishing quota corruption trial in which Namibian fisheries resources were allegedly stolen through deals with Icelandic company Samherji will begin on March 9, 2026. Acting Judge Marilize du Plessis rejected multiple postponement applications from former minister Sacky Shanghala and co-accused, ruling that lengthy delays in the civil review process and years of court proceedings weighed against further delay.

    22 January 2026 · New Era →

  2. Fishrot trial postponed to March 2026 pending appeals

    High Court Judge Marilize du Plessis postponed the Fishrot trial to 9–20 March 2026 after defendants' unsuccessful bid for a longer postponement pending a collateral review against the Anti-Corruption Commission. Sackeus Shanghala indicated he will appeal the judge's refusal, challenging the ACC's authority to have investigated evidence under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act prior to 2023.

    22 January 2026 · Informanté →

Pius Mwatelulo — Namibian press coverage · Namibia Minute