Windhoek High Court Judge Herman January on Friday convicted a 46-year-old man of murdering his common-law wife by stabbing her at least 16 times with a knife on Christmas Day in 2021.
The incident happened in full view of the minor children of the deceased, Ndapandula Ndinelago Imene. They had to testify in an open court, and had to endure recounting the
horrible ordeal.
Judge January convicted Henok Negodhi of murder, read with the provisions of the Combating of Domestic Violence Act.
Negodhi admitted stabbing the deceased, but denied that he intended to kill her, saying he stabbed her in self-defence after she attacked him with the knife.
However, the boy, who was 12 years old at the time, testified that he saw the accused putting the knife under the pillow before the incident happened.
Judge January rejected Negodhi’s defence, and found that he killed the deceased with direct intent. The judge said eyewitness evidence showed that the accused deliberately stabbed the deceased in vulnerable places on her body, as evidenced by the post-mortem report, which is an indication that he intended to kill her.
According to the doctor who conducted the post-mortem, the organs of the deceased were white and had no blood in them, which indicated that she bled out.
The doctor further testified that she found several wounds on the hands and arms of the deceased, which indicated that she had tried to defend herself against the onslaught. Judge January stated that the issues for determination are unlawfulness and intention.
“From the evidence, it is evident that the accused attacked the deceased repeatedly with the same knife, and inflicted fatal injuries on the deceased,” the judge remarked. He further said the court assessed the eyewitness accounts of the three minor witnesses, and found their testimonies credible and trustworthy. Even if the accused’s version was accepted, the judge found, it is evident that after grabbing the knife from the deceased, the purported threat was neutralised, eliminating any imminent threat to the accused.
The danger thus ceased to exist, Judge January stressed and continued: “Moreover, no wounds were observed on the body of the accused, and there is therefore no proof that there was in fact a struggle for this knife.”
Based on the medical evidence, eyewitness accounts and the absence of injuries on the body of the accused, the judge concluded that the accused attacked the deceased in a fit of rage.
He further said the accused planned his attack beforehand and executed it accordingly. The deceased attempted to defend herself, yet the accused vigorously pursued his goal, which was to murder the deceased, and he succeeded, the judge stated.
Negodhi will return to court on 2 December for pre-sentencing procedures. He is representing himself after his Legal Aid-instructed lawyer Mbanga Siyomunji withdrew from the matter for conflicting instructions after the State closed its case. The State is represented by Anna Amukugo. Negodhi remains in custody at the Windhoek Correctional Facility’s section for trial-awaiting inmates.