State advocate Ethel Ndlovu has asked Windhoek High Court Judge Nate Ndauendapo to remove a man he convicted for murder, kidnapping and several rapes from society for a very long time.
The judge convicted Johannes Lukuwa Hausiku on one count of murder, one count of kidnapping and five counts of rape.
Hausiku was facing 15 charges emanating from three incidents, which took place at Outjo during the first half of 2012.
He has denied guilt on all of the charges.
He kidnapped and raped a woman at Outjo in the Kunene region on the night of 30 May 2012.
He then murdered the woman’s two-year-old son and hindered police investigations by telling her to report to the police she had been attacked and her son was killed by four unknown men.
Ndlovu told the court that Hausiku is a danger to society and does not deserve any mercy from the court.
She further said his conduct when he killed the two-year-old boy and threw his body away on a rubbish dump shows he has no moral compass.
According to her, his further offences of raping women left, right and centre illustrate his utter disrespect for women and the rule of law.
This, she said, shows he is not a candidate for rehabilitation and must be removed from society for its protection.
She proposed 30 years for the murder, six years for the kidnapping and 15 years for each rape conviction.
Theo Carollus, who is representing Hausiku on instructions of Legal Aid, asked the court to show leniency to his client.
He said that it was proven that Hausiku suffers from a mental defect – although the court rejected the defence of mental incapacity – and as such, his moral blameworthiness was diminished.
According to Carollus, with the correct treatment, Hausiku could become a productive member of society.
He asked for a wholly suspended sentence.
The judge found that Hausiku was indeed able to appreciate the wrongfulness of his actions when he committed the crimes he was convicted of.
“I am satisfied that the State proved a reasonable doubt that the accused did not suffer from a mental defect at the time the offences were committed, and that he can be held criminally responsible for his actions,” the judge said during the verdict.
Judge Ndauendapo indicated he will deliver his sentence on 4 October.
Hausiku, who has been in custody since his arrest in June 2012, remains in custody at the Windhoek Correctional Facility’s section for trial awaiting inmates.
– rrouth@nepc.com.na