A break-in at a recently started renewable energy business in Windhoek’s Prosperita area has left the owner’s ambitious growth plans up in the air.
According to Lyndon Elliot, co-founder of Light Systems Namibia, he decided to go to the office on Sunday to have some work done and discovered the premises had been burgled.
Upon arrival yesterday at the crime scene at Palnic Square complex, Namibian Sun witnessed a hole in the complex wall and a ladder left inside the premises, which Elliot said was used by the criminals. A light bulb positioned above the front door had been removed. “I came in and found the door open, and the alarm still armed as though nobody had been in here,” Elliot said. He said the criminals passed underneath a broken motion sensor that had recently been reported to their security company.
The criminals stole a number of solar panels on the ground floor before using a ladder to reach the second floor while avoiding a sensor positioned at the top of the stairs. Elliot said the losses could be more than N$40 000. “Regardless of the amount, this is a major setback for us as a start-up company. We were going to take on new staff next month, but that’s not going to be possible now,” he said.
He said the four-month-old company had not yet insured its stock and equipment. “At this point, all I can say to anyone approached is, don’t buy those panels. They have been damaged, and are traceable,” he said.