WINDHOEK - “You are killing me Tate. You are killing me Tatekulu.”
These, according to eyewitnesses, were begging words from Katrina Kasita as she begged her live-in boyfriend for mercy before he allegedly killed and burnt her in their shack Sunday morning.
A resident of Namibia Nalitungwe settlement narrated this to New Era during a visit to the area, following the horrible incident that left residents in the area traumatised.
The settlement is situated on the periphery of Windhoek between Ombili and Hakahana.
The fire debris which is cordoned off by police yellow tape is a sad reminder of the fateful night. Police were at the scene yesterday collecting evidence and taking photographs.
The ruins are visible as it is situated on the banks of the mountain where the shack was.
“When you hear a person pleading with the killer using all those words, one would assume he would have stopped,” said resident Hendrina Kashonga.
During a brief chat with this reporter, Kashonga also said a young woman who lived alone next to the couple’s shack relocated from her place following the incident as it left her devastated. It is thought that the suspect covered Kasita with blankets, poured paraffin on her and set her alight. New Era also learnt that the suspect had attempted to burn Kasita before a fight but failed.
Kashonga told New Era she has trouble sleeping at night after the incident. She explains that every time she hears movements outside her shack, she thinks it’s the suspect coming to set her home on fire.
“What he did will not be erased from our minds and hearts. What happened here is bad, even in our children eyes. Kasita babysat most of the children here before she found employment. I wonder how this affects the children’s minds.”
Kashonga said the late Kasita moved to the area in 2017 and about seven months later, the suspect moved in. The deceased, a mother of six, was allegedly assaulted and killed before her body was set alight by her boyfriend who fled the scene afterwards. New Era is informed their relationship was marred with violence. Cases of arson, murder and obstructing the course of justice have been opened against the suspect. Khomas Regional Police Commander, Commissioner Joseph Shikongo confirmed the 35-year-old suspect was arrested in Northern Industrial Area late Monday evening.
An image of the suspect, who seems to have suffered burns on his face, went viral yesterday after he was arrested the previous day.
Shikongo told New Era it seems like the suspect suffered from fatigue from where he was hiding and approached people at a service station in the area and asked them to pray for him. He said people alerted the police after they saw he had fire wounds and there was a suspect being sought by the police following Sunday’s incident.
The police commissioner stated the suspect is currently admitted at Katutura State Hospital under police guard.
Kasita’s relatives visited the destroyed shack yesterday morning. They were going through the remains and collecting the little they could to take along to the elders in the north where Kasita will be buried.
“He hacked her with axe-pickle. Why did he burn her? She was the breadwinner in their household. What did she do for him to do this?” asked Paulina Hangula, the deceased’s aunt.