OSHAKATI – A construction industry businessman from the north, Sindano Hango, 32, who is accused of raping his cousin and offering a N$10 000 bribe to silence her, appeared in the Oshakati Magistrate’s Court last week Thursday.
The matter was postponed to Thursday this week – November 6 – for a formal bail application.
The accused allegedly tried to bribe the victim with N$10 000 by using a corrupt police officer to do his bidding.
He surrendered himself, accompanied by his lawyer, at the police station on Wednesday.
The alleged rape occurred on October 10 2014 at Uudhiya village in the Oshana Region when Hango – a well-known businessman and a councillor’s son – allegedly sexually attacked his cousin and then offered her money to buy her silence.
The arrest came as a relief to the victim, who complained that although she opened a case on October 10, the police were reluctant to arrest the suspect due to his status in society as a wealthy businessman.
The victim also accused the family of Hango of trying to bribe her with money, while a police officer at Oshakati apparently also tried to talk her into withdrawing the charges, which she refused.
The incident sparked a wave of condemnation from civil society, among them women’s organisations who criticised the conduct of the police and the actions of the suspect’s mother who allegedly tried to persuade the victim not to make a case against her son.