Lies have short legs: NOCMA caught red handed over K0.7 billion scam

The lie is beginning to unravel at NOCMA, with the K0.7 billion scam now raising questions that go beyond fraud to possible negligence, collusion and a carefully planned operation. What was initially presented as a fraudulent payment is now raising harder questions about who verified the new bank details, why the money was released without direct confirmation from the supplier and whether this was really just a costly mistake or something far more deliberate. “Who verified the new banking details? Did anyone call Mozhandling directly before sending US$403,605?” popular X user Wongani asked, as public anger grows over how the money left a state institution. “Why was the original Ms Maria not contacted when the details changed? How many more payments are sitting out there with the same vulnerability?” Wongani further questioned. The questions follow NOCMA’s confirmation that fraudsters impersonating Mozhandling Limited, a company contracted to provide petroleum handling services at the Port of Nacala in Mozambique, successfully diverted the payment. According to NOCMA, the disputed US$403,605, equivalent to about K700 million, related to outstanding payments for services connected to fuel handling and movement through Nacala. The trail began with email communications from a woman identified as Patricia Maria, who presented herself as an employee of Mozhandling and followed up on an outstanding balance covering services provided between August 2025 and January 2026. In March 2026, NOCMA received further communication purportedly from Ms Maria advising that Mozhandling had changed its banking arrangements. New account details at Bank of America were supplied. NOCMA says it also received a letter purportedly issued by Bank of America confirming the existence of the account. Relying on the information, NOCMA instructed National Bank of Malawi to process the payment. The US$403,605 was transferred on April 29, 2026. About two weeks later, the genuine Ms Maria contacted NOCMA again to follow up on the same outstanding payment. That was when the alarm bells went off. The company realised that the money had already been transferred to an account that did not belong to the legitimate supplier. NOCMA has since reported the matter to the Malawi Police Service, while Bank of America and other relevant financial institutions are assisting with efforts to trace the funds and establish how the fraud occurred. But for many Malawians, the biggest issue is no longer simply who stole the money. It is how easily the money was released. The pattern is now prompting Malawians to ask whether the latest incident should be dismissed as an isolated cybercrime or examined as part of a deeper institutional problem. Critics are asking why a change in banking details for a supplier handling hundreds of thousands of dollars was not independently verified through a direct call or another secure channel before payment. According to Wongani, the controversy is also exposing questions surrounding the Government-to-Government fuel procurement arrangement. Malawi moved from the Open Tender System to the G2G model in November 2024, giving NOCMA a central role in fuel procurement and requiring it to establish new shipping, clearing, port handling and transportation arrangements. “Izi ndizokoza since experts have raised alarm about the G2G model from the start,” wrote Wongani. “Malawians we deserve answers. Not just about this payment but about every payment made under the G2G arrangement. Because if they can walk away with $403,605, what else are they walking away with?” Adding another layer to growing questions over how the G2G system was handled before the change of government is business magnate Ben Wandawanda, who said NOCMA did not implement the official G2G framework as expected, instead pursuing its own version of the arrangement without executive approval. “The only problem is that the then NOCMA Board did not implement the G2G framework…in fact as of March 2025, they were still trying to implement their own version of G2G which never got any executive sign off until governments changed,” Wandawanda wrote on X. Renowned commentator Onjezani Kenani has questioned whether the transaction could have involved insiders. “This story at NOCMA does not make sense. There must have been collusion within. There are thieves within,” Kenani wrote on Facebook. He urged investigators to conduct a thorough probe and questioned whether those investigating the matter could themselves be trusted. Rights lawyer and corruption whistleblower Alexious Kamangila has gone further, calling for accountability at the highest level of NOCMA. “Everyone in an Executive position and the BOARD should RESIGN, be investigated and prosecuted,” Kamangila wrote in a series of Facebook posts. What was initially presented as a fraudulent payment is now raising harder questions about who verified the new bank details, why the money was released without direct confirmation from the supplier and whether this was really just a costly mistake or something far more deliberate. “Who verified the new banking details? Did anyone call Mozhandling directly before sending US$403,605?” popular X user Wongani asked, as public anger grows over how the money left a state institution. “Why was the original Ms Maria not contacted when the details changed? How many more payments are sitting out there with the same vulnerability?” Wongani further questioned. The questions follow NOCMA’s confirmation that fraudsters impersonating Mozhandling Limited, a company contracted to provide petroleum handling services at the Port of Nacala in Mozambique, successfully diverted the payment. According to NOCMA, the disputed US$403,605, equivalent to about K700 million, related to outstanding payments for services connected to fuel handling and movement through Nacala. The trail began with email communications from a woman identified as Patricia Maria, who presented herself as an employee of Mozhandling and followed up on an outstanding balance covering services provided between August 2025 and January 2026. In March 2026, NOCMA received further communication purportedly from Ms Maria advising that Mozhandling had changed its banking arrangements. New account details at Bank of America were supplied. NOCMA says it also received a letter purportedly issued by Bank of America confirming the existence of the account. Relying on the information, NOCMA instructed National Bank of Malawi to process the payment. The US$403,605 was transferred on April 29, 2026. About two weeks later, the genuine Ms Maria contacted NOCMA again to follow up on the same outstanding payment. That was when the alarm bells went off. The company realised that the money had already been transferred to an account that did not belong to the legitimate supplier. NOCMA has since reported the matter to the Malawi Police Service, while Bank of America and other relevant financial institutions are assisting with efforts to trace the funds and establish how the fraud occurred. But for many Malawians, the biggest issue is no longer simply who stole the money. It is how easily the money was released. The pattern is now prompting Malawians to ask whether the latest incident should be dismissed as an isolated cybercrime or examined as part of a deeper institutional problem. Critics are asking why a change in banking details for a supplier handling hundreds of thousands of dollars was not independently verified through a direct call or another secure channel before payment. According to Wongani, the controversy is also exposing questions surrounding the Government-to-Government fuel procurement arrangement. Malawi moved from the Open Tender System to the G2G model in November 2024, giving NOCMA a central role in fuel procurement and requiring it to establish new shipping, clearing, port handling and transportation arrangements. “Izi ndizokoza since experts have raised alarm about the G2G model from the start,” wrote Wongani. “Malawians we deserve answers. Not just about this payment but about every payment made under the G2G arrangement. Because if they can walk away with $403,605, what else are they walking away with?” Adding another layer to growing questions over how the G2G system was handled before the change of government is business magnate Ben Wandawanda, who said NOCMA did not implement the official G2G framework as expected, instead pursuing its own version of the arrangement without executive approval. “The only problem is that the then NOCMA Board did not implement the G2G framework…in fact as of March 2025, they were still trying to implement their own version of G2G which never got any executive sign off until governments changed,” Wandawanda wrote on X. Renowned commentator Onjezani Kenani has questioned whether the transaction could have involved insiders. “This story at NOCMA does not make sense. There must have been collusion within. There are thieves within,” Kenani wrote on Facebook. He urged investigators to conduct a thorough probe and questioned whether those investigating the matter could themselves be trusted. Rights lawyer and corruption whistleblower Alexious Kamangila has gone further, calling for accountability at the highest level of NOCMA. “Everyone in an Executive position and the BOARD should RESIGN, be investigated and prosecuted,” Kamangila wrote in a series of Facebook posts.