Police corner Salima Sugar Company suspects

 Police have located Salima Sugar Company Limited (SSCL) former chief executive officer Henri Njoloma and three other suspects wanted in connection with abuse of K50 billion at the company.

National Police spokesperson Peter Kalaya disclosed this in an interview on Thursday, but refused to divulge their outside the country locations for fear of jeopardising police work.

He, however, indicated that the law enforcers are working in collaboration with Interpol to bring the suspects back home to answer their charges.

Last month, police obtained warrants of arrest for Njoloma, Prashant Sharma, Vikas Hirawatt and Sachin Nikam, who they failed to arrest as they had reportedly travelled outside the country.

Police at the time only arrested SSCL former chairperson Shirieesh Betgiri, and later granted him bail.

Said Kalaya: “We have located the four suspects and we are doing everything possible with our partners to bring them home so they can answer the charges in court.”

He said the suspects will answer charges ranging from uttering false documents, forgery, cheating, conspiracy to defraud and money-laundering.

Kalaya added that police are also working to obtain warrants of arrest for other suspects linked to the same.

Speaking last month at a press briefing in Lilongwe, Attorney General Thabo Chakaka- Nyirenda stressed that the impact of the alleged fraudulent activities on the country’s economy is deep, adding that efforts to recover the funds are driven by unwavering commitment to upholding the rule of law, promoting transparency, and ensuring that those responsible are held accountable for their actions.

Said Chakaka-Nyirenda: “I will be in close collaboration with local and international law enforcement agencies, regulatory bodies, and financial institutions to trace the illicit transactions and track down the hidden assets acquired through these illegal means just as I did with funds that got lost in the fertiliser transaction.”

A forensic audit conducted on SSCL found that the contracting of Apollo International Limited, which designed, supplied, installed and commissioned the sugar processing plant and factory may have been a misprocurement, according to law.

The audit also established that the Greenbelt Initiative (GBI) handpicked a private partner without due regard to the Public Private Partnership Act of 2011 whose prerequisite include seeking Cabinet approval (Section 25(1); conducting of a feasibility study, pre-selection of bidders, evaluation of bids, award of contracts, and registration of such contracts.

During the signing of the shareholding agreement in 2015, it is indicated that Malawi Government invested $35 million in the sugar project through SSCL consisting $33.640 million sugar mill, $800 000 in land and $744 000 in buildings