State advocate Timo Itula last week asked Windhoek High Court Judge Herman January to convict a resident of Otjimbingwe in the Erongo region on the charges he is facing.
Itula submitted that the State proved beyond a reasonable doubt that it was Jackson Katjombe (36), who raped and assaulted three girls, one of whom is physically and mentally disabled.
It is alleged that Katjombe raped the complainants between January and September 2018 at a farm in the Otjimbingwe area.
It is further alleged that he physically assaulted his victims, and threatened to kill them should they report the alleged rapes to anyone.
Katjombe pleaded not guilty to three counts of rape, alternatively contravening the Combating of Immoral Practices Act, three counts of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, and three counts of assault by threat at the start of his trial last year.
One of the complainants is a 29-year-old disabled person, and has the mental capacity of a six-year-old child. She also cannot walk and crawl to get anywhere, and also cannot use her arms. She is totally dependent on her siblings for her care. The other is an eight-year-old. A doctor already testified that he examined the eight-year-old and that he found that her hymen is intact, and that she hadn’t had any sexual intercourse.
The accused further claimed that he was in an intimate relationship with the 14-year-old complainant for about three months before the complainant relocated to Windhoek.
Itula, however, conceded that the State did not prove the element of grievous bodily harm on the assault charges, but only common assault. With regards to the charges of assault by threat, he conceded that it is a duplication of charges as the threats were made in the commission of the rape act. He argued that all the other charges, including the rapes and assaults, were proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
According to Itula, the accused’s version was marred with blatant lies and cannot be believed, whereas the evidence of the victims were credible.
Tjingairi Kaurivi for the accused, on the other hand, reasoned that the versions of the victims cannot be believed as their evidence stank of rehearsals. He said they were coached on what to say. The lawyer added that the only evidence before court is circumstantial and many inferences can be drawn from the evidence, which creates reasonable doubt. His client must thus be given the benefit of the doubt. Judge January reserved his judgement until 18 November.
Katjombe remains in custody.