RUNDU – The Rundu Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday denied bail to 24-year-old Henog Dihako from Mushashani village in Mukwe Constituency who stands accused of murder, rape and defeating the course of justice, as he tried to conceal the heinous crime against his girlfriend by burying her body in a shallow grave.
After the alleged rape and murder he buried his girlfriend near the Divundu Rehabilitation Centre. The body was discovered on Sunday and he was subsequently arrested.
The court explained to Dihako his legal rights when he made the initial routine court appearance on Wednesday, where he was informed it was his right to engage a legal representative of his choice or to apply for a Legal Aid lawyer, who will be provided by the state.
He was also informed by the court he has the right to conduct his own defence.
From the two options, he opted to apply for legal aid from the government.
His case was remanded to February 19, 2019 for further investigations, legal aid application and lab results. The state objected to bail, stating that the offence is serious and it won’t be in the interest of justice for the accused to be granted bail.
The charges are that he raped his 16-year-old girlfriend, killed her and buried her body.
The court granted the state’s application and rights to formal bail application and the accused understood. The accused appeared before Magistrate Sonia Samupofu while Godfrey Shivolo represented the state and Lydia Kaveto was the court interpreter in the matter.