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Hotel Thule in Namibia: A Good Spot for a Hiding CEO

Go To The Hotel's Web 
  Site Where: 1 Gorges Street, Windhoek, Namibia
November 20, 2006 at 11:24 AM | by Tim L. | 0 Comments

What if a multi-millionaire on the run from the law set himself and his family up in a hotel that bills itself as "a mythical place Scandinavian legends say exists at the frontier of reality - the edge of the world, the place where the real and the imaginary touch"? Sometimes the irony sets itself up in such a perfect sculpture that it's almost makes us believe in intelligent design.

While the new James Bond movie was opening in theaters, international business news was covering a real man of mystery: former Comverse software company CEO Jacob Alexander. Turns out that he and his family were hiding out in Namibia (yes, the Brangelina Namibia) on the southwest coast of Africa. They stayed for about a month at Hotel Thule in Windhoek, checked in as The Jacobs.

Among the things the hotel manager thought were odd, according to the Wall Street Journal, were that they paid for one month in advance in cash for two rooms and that "Mr. Jacob" got extremely agitated when CNN was not available on his TV for several days on end. We guess it's a good thing he wasn't staying in a Stoney Creek Hospitality hotel.

Jacob Alexander is on the lam after being indicted in a 35-count stock option scandal, but since Namibia doesn't have an extradition treaty with the U.S., he is currently free on $1.4 million bond until at least April 25. Since he has committed $43 million in Namibian investments to obtain residency there, something tells us he's not going anywhere.

If you would like to follow in his footsteps and act like a rich ex-CEO on the run, pretty Windhoek is billed as a hilly, picturesque capital. Hotel Thule is perched on a cliff overlooking the city, two kilometers away. "Flanked by stately palm trees, it is a haven for prolific bird life, guinea fowl, and curious creatures of the wilds like rock rabbits." There's now more room at the inn: the Jacobs/Alexanders have moved into their own new house, complete with a permanent security guard out front.