Neudamm murder accused gets lawyer at last

Home Crime and Courts Neudamm murder accused gets lawyer at last

Windhoek

The trial of a former worker at the Neudamm experimental farm near Windhoek who is alleged to have stabbed his lover to death is scheduled to start on October 3 in the Windhoek High Court.
The trial is set down from October 3 to 7 for plea and trial.

This came after the accused Eben Cloete, 37, finally managed to secure the services of a State-funded lawyer. Milton Engelbrecht of Engelbrecht Attorneys in Windhoek has been appointed by the Department of Legal Aid to represent Cloete in his trial.

Judge Dinah Usiku postponed the matter to October to give Engelbrecht a chance to get up to speed with the case.

The State alleges that Cloete stabbed the mother of his child at least eight times with a sharp object in her chest whereafter he fled the scene.

According to the charge sheet, Cloete unlawfully and intentionally broke open the door of Anna Nadia Coetzee with the intent to murder her and then intentionally killed her.

According to the summary of substantial facts in the indictment, Cloete and the deceased were in a domestic relationship.
On Thursday August 13, 2009 at the Neudamm experimental farm in the district of Windhoek the deceased upon seeing the accused approached her, entered her room at her parents’ house and locked the door, the indictment read.

It is further stated that Cloete followed the deceased, kicked open the door and entered the room and killed her.
She died at the scene as a result of haemothorax caused by the stab wounds.

State Advocate Palmer Khumalo is handling the State’s case.
Cloete remains in custody.