Absence of lawyers halts Fishrot trial

Windhoek High Court Acting Judge Moses Chinhengo on Wednesday postponed the Fishrot trial to Friday, after two defence lawyers failed to show up. At the start of the proceedings, the court was informed that defence lawyers Florian Beukes has been booked off, while Mbanga Siyomunji travelled out of town. The suspects are accused of having corruptly allocated alleged fishing quotas in exchange for bribes to Icelandic fishing company Samherji. The suspects, who have been in custody since November 2019, were set to plea to the 42 charges they face on Wednesday.