State prosecutor advocate Ethel Ndlovu on Friday asked Windhoek High Court Judge Dinnah Usiku to impose a sentence that would deter would-be offenders from committing murder in a domestic setting.

She said this during submissions for the appropriate sentence to be imposed on Jeremias Nowaseb (40), who was convicted of murder, read with provisions of the Combating of Domestic Violence Act, rape, assault, and defeating the course of justice in October.

Nowaseb was convicted of murdering his 20-year-old girlfriend and mother to his infant child, Christina Kooper, with 18 blows to the head with a stone, crushing her skull at Aranos near Mariental on 31 October 2020.

Kooper died at the scene due to blunt force injuries to the brain. 

Nowaseb pleaded not guilty to the charges at the start of his trial and said he acted in self-defence when he hit the deceased at least twice with the stone after she attacked him with it first. However, the doctor who conducted the postmortem concluded that she was hit at least 18 times.

Ndlovu told the court that murder is a serious offence, and when it occurs in a domestic setting, it is more aggravating. “The sanctity of life is a fundamental right, and it is not for the accused to decide to take life,” she said.

She further said when considering a suitable sentence, the court should take the repercussions the accused’s actions had on the family of the deceased into account. 

According to her, the mother of the deceased testified that she is still haunted to this day by the murder of her daughter. Ndlovu further told the judge that the blameworthiness of the accused is very high as there is an element of premeditation in the murder. 

She said Kooper died a very painful death at the hands of a person that was supposed to love and protect her. She further said the apology the accused extended to the victim’s mother was not proper and was not sincere. She asked the court to sentence Nowaseb to 30 years on the murder conviction, 15 years on the rape conviction, 12 months on the assault conviction, and 24 months on the defeating conviction. 

On a question by Judge Usiku on the accumulative effect of the sentences, she said the judge can use her discretion. 

Eliaser Shikwa, his legal aid lawyer, told the court that his client regrets what he had done and apologised to the mother of the deceased. He said the accused has six children with different women who will suffer if he is sent to prison for a very long time. 

He further said that Nowaseb was a productive member of society who cared for his children. He asked the court not to impose a sentence that would break the accused and to show leniency. He proposed a sentence of 15 years on the murder count, 10 years on the rape count, 24 months on the assault count, and 12 months on the defeating count. He further asked the judge to order the sentences to run concurrently.

The judge indicated that she will deliver her sentence on 11 December, and Nowaseb remains in custody.

-rrouth@nepc.com.na