Campost Case: Damba Tezi gets 12 years jail term

The verdict was pronounced at the Special Criminal Court in Yaounde yesterday March 23, 2015.

The Special Criminal Court in Yaounde has slammed a 12-year jail term on Damba Tezi, a former fake worker of CAMPOST for embezzling public funds.

The sentence was the main substance of the judgment the court delivered yesterday March 23, 2015 handed down by Justice René Lucien Eyango. Justice René Lucien Eyango’s ruling also included life sentences including warrants of arrests for Zamang Florence Kyen, Mbock David Desiré, Bekale Jean Marc, Bekale Jean Marc, Damba Tezi, Bikala Serges for complicity in embezzling State funds. The accused were tried for embezzlement of FCFA 51, 676,830 belonging to CAMPOST.

Reading the judgement, the presiding judge, Justice René Lucien Eyango said results of investigations carried out by CAMPOST Regional Delegation in the West Region revealed that Zamang Florence Kyen, former Financial Clerk at the CAMPOST agency in Koundja/Koutaba embezzled FCFA 51 million.

That Zamang Florence Kyen had abandoned her job at Koundja, Koutaba with a deficit of the above mentioned amount and that the control team from CAMPOST that went to the office did not only notice the presence of an unknown worker who claimed to be working in accordance with the Financial Clerk of the CAMPOST Agency who is on the run, but he equally is the same person, Damba Tezi, fraudulently signed money orders on June 13, 2013 worth FCFA 5,820,000 of which the sender was Mbock David Desiré and the beneficiary Bekale Jean Marc.

That on June 4, 2013 Zamang Florence Kyen informed the Head of the Gendarmeie in the West Region that she had FCFA 42, 909,627.

But when the team went to Koundja to collect the money on the authorisation of Jean Batkom chief of service of the Treasury and accounting did not find Zamang Florence and was told by Damba Tezi who was found there that she was sick and had not been to work since June 5, 2013. Since Zamanag Florence was not available and could not be joined on phone a team was sent to her office accompanied by a Bailiff. After control only FCFA I, 462,122 was found in the safe.

From the account documents in the office cash and expenditure carried out between June 1 to 13, 2013 making a total of FCFA 53,138,952 was expected to be found in the office. Also that while Zamang Florence was absent, Damba Tezi who was found in the office had signed money orders of FCFA 3,000,000 and 2,800,000 each to the benefit of Bekale Jean Marc.

A warrant of arrest was issued against Zamang Florence on October 2013. The verdict also included warrants of arrest for Mbock David Desiré, Bekale Jean Marc, Bekale Jean Marc, Damba Tezi, Bikala Serges who are presently on the run. The accused will have to pay FCFA 2 million each as damages to the State, authorised the convicted to petition the Supreme Court for Judicial review within 48 hours.