Windhoek
The trial of a man accused of bludgeoning his lover to death with an unknown object is reaching its closing stages with submissions on the verdict expected on March 16.
The trial which stared in August last year before Judge Nate Ndauendapo has progressed swiftly compared to other similar murder trials.
After Paulus Ruben, 49, pleaded not guilty to a charge of murder read with the Combating of Domestic Violence Act, the State called various witnesses who all claimed to have seen him at the house of the deceased shortly before she was killed.
The State alleges that Ruben killed his lover of five months, Magritha Beukes, during the night of January 03, 2012 with an unknown object and ran away.
The deceased was discovered the next morning lying dead in her bed. She died of subarachnoid haemorrhage due to blunt force trauma.
Ruben was arrested nine days later at a farm near Rehoboth where he was working.
Ruben went to the farm on January 03 after he received a call from a friend about a job at the farm.
He informed the court he went to look for a lift to the farm at around 13h30 and arrived at around 17h00.
However, various witnesses told the court they saw Ruben at the house of the deceased during that afternoon. One of the witnesses, Johanna Beukes, a sister of the deceased, told the court she saw Ruben at her house at around 15h30.
She further testified she saw the accused again at around 16h30 when he fetched a mattress from the deceased’s house and lay it on the stoep in front of the house of the deceased.
Another witness, Josefina Eksteen told the court she saw Ruben that evening at around 19h30 when she saw him translating for an Oshiwambo speaking man.
Ruben was however adamant he left during the day and told the court the translation took place during the preceding November.
However, another witness, Sam Shaanika Petrus, told the court that Ruben arrived at the farm on January 09, 2012, five days after the body of the deceased was found.
According to him when he enquired from Ruben as to what he was doing there, Ruben told him that he crashed the car of his previous employer and was looking for work to pay for the repairs.
Ruben also told him that he was afraid the police were looking for him, Petrus told the court.
But Ruben is sticking to his story that he left the deceased alive and well when he left Banhoff on January 03 in search of employment while he was employed as a driver at Banhoff.
Ruben is represented by Hipura Ujaha on instructions from legal aid and the State by State Advocate Ethel Ndlovu.