FORMER Namibian soccer chief Immanuel ('Imms') Namaseb was granted bail of N$40 000 when he made a first court appearance on a fraud charge in Windhoek yesterday.

Namaseb (49) appeared before Magistrate Tuvoye Nuule on a fraud charge in connection with allegations that he had failed to pay an account which a business under his control had run up at a hotel in Windhoek.

It is alleged that a group of Nigerian nationals supposed to be receiving training in Namibia under the Niger Delta Amnesty Programme was booked into a hotel in Windhoek, Hotel Pension Handke, in April last year.

According to the owner of the hotel, Rafid Manahi, Namaseb signed a lease agreement with the hotel for a year, and paid one month's accommodation for the group.

The group moved out of the hotel after about three months, leaving behind an unpaid accommodation bill.

Manahi claimed last year that Namaseb and his business, Institute for Development and Empowerment in Africa ('Idea'), owe his hotel about N$920 000 after breaking the year-long lease agreement that had been signed.

Namaseb was reported to have told The Namibian that Idea owed money to various accommodation establishments in Windhoek, but he denied that Idea owed Hotel Pension Handke the amount claimed by Manahi.

He said they owed Manahi N$160 300, it was reported.

With Namaseb's court appearance yesterday, Public Prosecutor Arrie Husselmann agreed that he could be granted bail, with a set of conditions attached.

Magistrate Nuule ordered that he can be released from custody once he has paid bail in an amount of N$40 000, and that he has to surrender his travel documents to the police officer investigating his case, may not leave the Windhoek district without the investigator's permission, and may not interfere with the investigation of the case.

Namaseb must appear in court again on May 21.

His case was postponed for further investigations to be carried out.

Namaseb was represented by defence lawyer Petrus Elago.