WINDHOEK – The mother of the 17-year-old Magdalena Stoffels who was raped and killed on her way to school eight years ago remains hopeful that her daughter’s killer would one day be found.
“There is no day that I do not pray to God for the person who did that to her to be found. I believe he will hand himself over to the police. I firmly believe that whoever did that to my child will be apprehended one day,” Magrieta Ihuhua told New Era recently.
Stoffels was found with her throat slit but still alive in a riverbed near Dawid Bezuidenhout High School where she was a learner. She died shortly after being found.
“The person who did that to my daughter took a lot from me. That person robbed me of so much. My child was a visionary,” said an emotional Ihuhua. Stoffels would have turned 25 this year.
“Each time I see young ladies her age, I imagine what she would have been. She loved decorating. Maybe she would have had her own events company or be working somewhere. Maybe she would have been married or had a child of her own. I can only imagine what she would have been,” Ihuhua said softly, as she fought back tears. Removing spectacles from her eyes, Ihuhua said she has forgiven her daughter’s killer.
“But the pain is still there. It’s difficult to heal completely because of the increase in cases of women and children being raped and killed. When I read or hear about these things in the news media I feel the pain. The pain never goes away because these crimes continue unabated. There is no space or time to heal. When the news of that little girl (Cheryl Avihe Ujaha) broke I relived the pain of her mother. It’s very difficult. Someone even remarked in my presence that her case will end up like that of Magdalena Stoffels, not knowing that I am the mother until someone told the person,” Ihuhua related.
Since 26 August a number of gender-based violence cases were reported in the media. Among them, Ujaha who was reported missing and some of her body parts were found on 28 August. Two months after Ujaha’s death, it was reported on 26 October that an eight-year-old girl was raped by a 20-year-old man who reportedly cut her private parts.
Again, on 26 October in the Hardap Region an 11-year-old boy was sodomised by a 28-year-old man from Stampriet. In the Erongo Region at Okombahe, a 27-year-old woman was reportedly raped.
On 2 November, 39-year-old Lindie Prinsloo was murdered and died allegedly at the hands of her boyfriend 29-year-old Ivan Pitt (later committed suicide) who slit her throat at their rented home in Swakopmund.
Ihuhua related that her family never really received counselling on dealing with the loss of their loved one.
“We never really got psychological help to help us deal with the pain we felt inside. We relied mostly on people praying for us but we never learned how to live with the pain,” remarked the 56-year-old Ihuhua.
To help her deal with the pain, Ihuhua said she wants to adopt a baby girl that she could raise as her own.
“That person robbed me of my only daughter,” she continued. Although they miss her presence, Ihuhua said the family does not really talk about “Maggie” – as she affectionately referred to her during our interview.
“Her older brother was affected by her death because they were close. But he does not like to talk about her. The younger brother who is more of an extrovert does not remember much about Maggie because he was young when she died,” Ihuhua said.
Despite being hopeful that her daughter’s killer would be found, Ihuhua is uneasy about the possibility that he is, or they are, still out there. The only suspect in the case, Junias Fillipus, was acquitted. Fillipus was arrested after he was found washing clothing in the same river where Stoffels had been attacked. He was arrested some metres from the spot where she had been found. The charges against Fillipus were withdrawn on instructions from the prosecutor general after it was discovered that crucial forensic evidence in the case did not link him to the rape and murder of Stoffels. The crime remains unsolved. Ihuhua said the family last heard from the police investigators two years after her daughter’s death.
“It’s difficult because we don’t have many investigators in this country. We need more investigators to deal with complicated cases. The police are the ones doing the work of investigators. It’s difficult for them to work effectively if that is the case,” added Ihuhua.
Meanwhile, police deputy commissioner Edwin Kanguatjivi said yesterday that the case is not closed. “If there is someone out there who has the information that could lead to the arrest of the killer should come forward,” pleaded Kanguatjivi.
There is a reward for anyone with information, he said, adding that the identity of whoever gives the police information will be kept a secret.
Kanguatjivi said forensic evidence was taken at the scene of the crime and it could be linked to the perpetrator in the future. “We still have to find the killer. The case is unresolved, it’s not closed. It’s there, maybe someday we will be lucky,” maintained Kanguatjivi. In some instances the people who commit these crimes are repeat offenders.
“We have the forensic evidence from that case. At one point the suspect or suspects might kill or rape again and we might be able to link their DNA with the forensic evidence in our possession,” added Kanguatjivi. But for now, Ihuhua says she will be vindicated if no more crimes are committed against women or children.
“Women and children are no longer safe in this country. We fear for our children. Mothers fear for their children. Children are raped, women are raped. We are not safe. Magdalena was killed eight years ago but still these things are happening a lot, more frequently,” she added. Ihuhua also remarked that the focus should be on strengthening family values and raising respectful children.
“Some of these things happen because children are brought up by a single parent and in many instances it is the mother. Sometimes even if the father is present, he does not actively participate in raising the children. We need help because how will the next generation survive at this rate of violence? Our boys need mentally and emotionally healthy male mentors,” Ihuhua remarked.