Windhoek
March 30 will be the day when Gobabis farm resident Paulus Shilongo, 32, who stands accused of murdering his common-law wife at a farm in the district, will hear if he is going to jail for murder, or culpable homicide.
After hearing submissions on the verdict from Trevor Brockerhoff, the State-funded lawyer of Shilongo and State Advocate Henry Muhongo, Judge Dinah Usiku indicated she will give her judgment then.
Brockerhoff wants the High Court to convict Shilongo of culpable homicide only, as he contends his client had no intention of killing the deceased when he assaulted her.
Muhongo on the other hand argued that Shilongo knew when he assaulted Dina Eises – with whom he was in a domestic relationship – continuously with various objects, including stones and a plastic pipe on the night of November 8 to 9, 2012 that she could die as a result. According to Muhongo, the doctor, who performed the autopsy testified that the assault on Eises was vicious and brutal and the force with which the injuries were inflicted was “excessive”.
He further said testimonies were heard from eyewitnesses that the assault on the deceased was protracted. “Evidence was heard from the accused himself that he continued to assault the deceased while they were on their way to his shack, following the initial assault on Farm Tredgold,” Muhongo reminded the court.
He said the only inference the court can draw is that Shilongo foresaw that his assault could kill the woman, but continued to “recklessly and negligently assault the helpless deceased.”
According to him there was no rational justification for the assault on the deceased and she was killed for no reason at all.
Brockerhoff told the court the accused conceded from the start that he assaulted the deceased and did not try to mislead the court.
He said Shilongo admitted the death of the deceased was as a result of the beatings she received at his hands, but implored the court to find that Shilongo did not have the necessary intention. He said the assault was not as protracted as the State would suggest and told the court the witnesses testified that they could hear the deceased scream, followed by silence, which indicates that the assault was carried out in short intervals.
Brockerhoff also reminded the court that the doctor could not rule out the fact the deceased could have suffered the fatal blow because of a fall onto a rock, as the area where the assault occurred was rocky terrain.
He said only two stones were identified as weapons used, which could explain the two lacerations on the forehead and the side of the head. But, Brockerhoff said, the blow at the back the head could have been the result of the deceased falling onto a rock.
He also told the court there was evidence the accused – after realising the extent of the beating – felt remorse and assisted the deceased to his shack where he put her to bed.
“This was not the conduct of someone who intends to kill his victim,” Brockerhoff stressed and asked the court to return a verdict of culpable homicide.
At the start of his trial Shilongo informed the court he admits the deceased died as a result of the assault, but denied intentionally killing her. Muhongo rejected the plea and said the State would not accept a conviction on anything less than murder with direct intent, read with the provisions of the Domestic Violence Act, and intends to prove its case through evidence.