The Ondangwa Magistrate’s Court has denied bail to a man (59) accused of killing a village headman and seriously wounding another.
The state warns that the life of the surviving victim, Iikokola village headman I-Ben Nashandi (54), could be at risk if the accused were to be released.
State prosecutor Yeukai Kangira has told the court that the accused, Sinskus Johannes, poses a danger to Nashandi who remains in hospital following the shooting.
“The accused person is facing serious offences, schedule one offences, where one victim is deceased and another is still in hospital.
We fear that he might go and carry out actions to murder the second victim,” she says.
Kangira says the accused also knows the eyewitnesses and could interfere with the investigation if released.
“The accused person was arrested at a different location. We also fear interference in the case as the accused knows the eyewitnesses.
It is not in the public interest or administration of justice to be granted bail,” she adds.
Johannes is accused of shooting Nashandi and his deputy, Sem Nepando, on 3 January following a land dispute at Iikokola village in the Oshikoto region.
Nepando, who was also the headman of Onelago village, died from the gunshot wounds.
The accused appeared in court yesterday, where bail was opposed and denied.
The Namibian has been informed that Johannes sent a voice message on WhatsApp after shooting the duo, stating that he had injured them.
Johannes is facing charges of murder, attempted murder, discharge of a firearm in a public place and defeating or attempting to defeat the course of justice when he allegedly hid the pistol he used to shoot the two men.
Kangira adds that the matter is still in the infancy stage as the state is still waiting for witness statements, photos, a postmortem report, medical evidence in the attempted murder charge and a report on the wounds sustained by Nashandi.
The prosecutor also says the state opposes the granting of bail as Johannes, a former mine worker at Oranjemund, is a flight risk and might abscond if released.
She adds that Johannes fled the scene when he shot the two traditional leaders.
Meanwhile, the Namibian Police in a media release issued on Sunday say the shooting occurred after Nashandi, Nepando and their secretary went to Johannes’ house to engage with him over a land dispute.
The police say the suspect had previously been ordered to move back the fence of his yard from a mahangu field, an instruction he allegedly refused to comply with.
“It is further alleged that during the engagement, a disagreement erupted and the suspect drew a pistol and shot the headman once in the abdomen. He survived.
The suspect then shot the assistant headman in the abdomen, who died on the spot.”
According to the police, the secretary fled the scene unharmed and alerted other villagers. The incident reportedly occurred at the fence of the mahangu field.
The police say a Baikal 9mm pistol, the suspected murder weapon, was found discarded in bushes away from the scene.
Nashandi’s brother, Juno, says the court had made the right decision in refusing bail.
He adds that the family supports the state’s opposition to bail.
Juno says the family hopes the court will impose a maximum sentence should the accused be found guilty.
“As a community, residents of Iikokola and as citizens of this country, we condemn this barbaric act committed against civil servants who were duly executing their duties,” he says.
“We are satisfied with the objection to bail and appeal to the prosecution to oppose bail at all levels until a successful conviction is achieved and a stiff maximum sentence is imposed. Justice must prevail.”
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