Bribery & corruptionOversight & ethics enforcementCourts & justice
Iceland's District Prosecutor has not yet decided whether to charge or drop the Samherji/Namibia bribery case, a year after the investigation was completed
Confidence: Corroborated · 3 sourcesIceland · Oct 12, 2026
Subject of this story
Office of the District Prosecutor of Iceland (Embætti héraðssaksóknara)
Samherji hf.
What happened
Iceland's Office of the District Prosecutor (Heradssaksoknari) has investigated fishing company Samherji for nearly six years over allegations, first aired by RUV in 2019, that it paid bribes to Namibian officials and politicians for fishing quotas. The prosecutor said in July 2025 that the investigation was complete; the next step is a decision to indict or dismiss. As of reports on June 22 and July 9, 2026, no decision had been announced, and nine current or former Samherji employees still hold suspect status. Suspects are presumed innocent and no charges have been filed.
By the numbers (1)
● confirmed by a primary document · ○ reported
Figures
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Nine defendants in Iceland's Samherji/Namibia case are awaiting a decision from the District Prosecutor, about a year after the investigation concluded.
1 source
- nutiminn.is
Níu sakborningar bíða niðurstöðu í Namibíumálinu
Sources (3)
mbl.is (Morgunblaðið)Rannsókn héraðssaksóknara á Samherjamálinu er lokið eftir tæp sex ár, en ekki hefur verið tekin ákvörðun um ákæru.
VísirÁkvörðun um saksókn hefur enn ekki verið tekin þrátt fyrir að rannsókn hafi lokið fyrir tæpu ári.
nutiminn.isNíu sakborningar bíða niðurstöðu í Namibíumálinu, um ári eftir að rannsókn héraðssaksóknara lauk.
Response
Office of the District Prosecutor of Iceland (Embætti héraðssaksóknara)
No response by publication
Contacted — no response by publication.
Samherji hf.
Not yet contacted
Not yet contacted for this story.
What happened next (0)
No outcome recorded yet.