WINDHOEK- A Namibian police force officer accused of shooting two people and killing one with a stray bullet in Okahandja Park informal settlement last week was denied bail during his first court appearance.

 A bullet fired by the on-duty officer, identified as Simon Hakandume, hit and killed Johannes Mbambi Muyingo, 29, who was holding his one-month-old baby in their shack in Okahandja Park.

Public Prosecutor Idda Hertha Itembu said the State is objecting to bail due to the seriousness of the offence and that it was not in the public interest if Hakandume were to be released on bail at this stage. 

Itembu said the investigations were also at an early stage.  Hakandume was advised to formally apply for bail and his case was postponed to November 2 for legal aid purposes.

Hakandume allegedly shot Muyingo while pursuing a suspect in the area who was wanted for assaulting his girlfriend.
The officer, a constable, firstly shot at a man identified as Johannes Kowetz, also aged 29, on the upper thigh, whom he allegedly mistook for the suspect. Kowetz, an employee of a local supermarket has been admitted at Windhoek Central State Hospital. He is not the suspect the police were looking for either. 

In a similar incident earlier this month, Lavinia Kagola, 27, a mother of two, was struck by a stray bullet believed to have been fired by police in Kilimanjaro informal settlement. Kagola later died in the Katutura State Hospital.