Mother accused of strangling son to hear fate

Maria Amakali Windhoek-The Prosecutor-General is set to pronounce herself in the case of Liina Lineekela Shaambeni, a mother accused of strangling her son to death with a rope. Shaambeni who made a brief appearance at the Windhoek magistrate’s court, on from custody on Tuesday was informed that her docket will be summarised and forwarded to the Prosecutor-General to decide on what charges Shaambeni has to stand trial for and where her trial will be conducted. Magistrate Michelle Kubersky was not pleased that Shaambeni’s docket had not yet been forwarded to the Prosecutor-General even though Shaambeni took her plea on October 3, last year. “The state had ample time to send this docket to the Prosecutor-General so the decision can be made available. The court is making this a final remand for the Prosecutor-General’s decision,” stated Kubersky. According to court documents, the prosecution accuses Shaambeni of the murder of her one-month-old baby boy on October 17, 2016 at Katutura Intermediate Hospital after having travelled from Luderitz. The substantial facts on Shaambeni’s charge sheet stated she unlawfully and intentionally killed her baby by strangling him with a rope. The baby’s corpse was found behind the nurses’ homes at the hospital in Windhoek. Shaambeni, who denied guilt in connection to the murder of her son, is said to have confessed to the police regarding what transpired. According to the police, Shaambeni confessed to the murder by indicating she tied a rope around her baby’s neck and strangled him because the baby’s father had denied paternity. Shaambeni is expected to make a return to court on March 22 after magistrate Kubersky postponed the matter for the Prosecutor-General’s decision. Shaambeni was represented by defence attorney Johan van Vuuren with state prosecutor Victoria Thompson standing in for the state.
2018-01-26 09:40:24 7 months ago