Iuze Mukube
Windhoek High Court Deputy Judge President Hannelie Prinsloo last Wednesday scheduled the trial of British businessman Harvey Boulter for commencement in March, next year.
This was following the request of Boulter’s lawyer, Sisa Namandje, for a longer postponement in order to consider the Supreme Court judgement that upheld the decision of the prosecutor general to arraign him on the charges levelled against him.
Boulter (55) faces charges in the High Court for murder, possession of a firearm without a licence, unlawful possession of ammunition and handling of a firearm whilst under the influence of liquor or a drug having a toxic effect. Prinsloo further ordered that by February next year all the issues that are still pending, for instance, the response of the accused on the State’s pre-trial memorandum should be filed on or before 26 February 2026. She also indicated that all other pending issues from both sides should be ironed out before February and for the matter to commence uninterrupted from 18 March 2026. The judgement that has to be considered, with consultation from expert, as indicated, is the Supreme Court decision that upheld the prosecutor general’s decision to arraign Boulter on various charges. The charge of murder and other counts are in connection with a fatal shooting that occurred on the businessman’s farm, near Kamanjab, in 2021. He was arraigned on the charges in 2022, but decided to challenge the PG’s decision to prosecute him in 2023 via a review application, claiming that there was no direct evidence linking him to the murder.
He also sought to have the rest of the charges set aside, arguing that he was entitled to own the gun as a sole shareholder of the licensed company, and that there was no evidence that he was intoxicated when handling the firearm. The review application was dismissed in the High Court on the basis that the decision to prosecute was based on an honest belief and reasonable evidence, hence, Boulter took his fight to the Supreme Court to appeal the said judgement. In the apex court, the challenge was dismissed on the premises that found that the PG was entitled to initiate proceedings in this regard as there was there was a proper case to lay before the court. The charges are in connection with an incident that occurred on the accused’s farm near Kamanjab, where an altercation between him and the deceased’s son, Pieter van Wyk, escalated, leading to Boulter removing his pistol, which subsequently discharged and ended up hitting the abdomen of the deceased, Gerhardus van Wyk, who intervened in the altercation. The version of Boulter is that he was assaulted by the Van Wyks and only held the pistol in his hand as a deterrent, and that the gun went off accidentally during the scuffle, without his finger on the trigger. Boulter is represented by Sisa Namandje and Kadhila Amoomo.The matter was postponed to 18 March 2025.