WALVIS BAY – Mariental resident Coenrad Strydom walked out of the Walvis Bay Magistrate’s Court a free man temporarily on Thursday after his murder case was struck from the court roll by magistrate John Sindano.
Strydom is accused of having murdered his wife, Engela Borruso Strydom, after a night out in November 2021 at Walvis Bay. The deceased was a renowned real estate agent.
According to police investigations, Strydom allegedly attempted to make it look like a suicide, resulting in him being arrested for the incident.
His legal representative Evert Gous objected to yet another postponement, saying that he can be summoned once the forensic analysis is ready.
This followed State prosecutor Annakleta Kandjimi’s request for another postponement to 31 May.
“It was previously indicated that forensic analysis needs to be done. However, we have received communication that it will be ready within 10 days. This is the State’s request for the case to be remanded until 31 May,” she submitted.
Gous, however, stated during the proceedings that the case was postponed already in December for the PG’s decision.
“However, we received a letter from advocate Antonia Verhoef, who is handling the matter, with instructions that had to be completed,” Gous said.
He added that they had postponements in 2021 too, yet the State wants the case to be postponed for another four months.
“The accused resides in Mariental. He reports himself according to the conditions, and travels to Walvis Bay, just to hear that we need another postponement for investigations,” Gous stated. He continued that this is unacceptable as after 16 months, the investigations are not yet finalised.
Magistrate Sindano, before making his decision, said the court had previously indicated that the matter will be removed from the roll if there is no cause shown.
“The State’s application today states a contradiction in terms. The defence has demonstrated that prejudice will accrue if a further remand is granted, as the accused resides in Mariental and the defence counsel travels from Windhoek to attend to the court proceedings. Inasmuch as this is a sensitive matter, nothing prevents the State from re-summoning the accused once the investigations are finalised,” Sindano stated before removing the case from the court roll.