‘Tombo’ mob victim goes into hiding
A 67-year-old woman accused of poisoning patrons at her cuca shop at Iikango village in the Oshikoto Region has gone into hiding. This after community members meted out mob justice against her last Friday, an incident that saw the victim being hospitalised. She has since been discharged.
On Friday afternoon, community members took the law into their own hands when they used sticks and other objects to beat pensioner Paulina Tobias Kwedhi, whom they accused of poisoning her patrons. They claimed that her actions allegedly led to several deaths in the community over the years.
Over the weekend, a video of Kwedhi being beaten by villagers went viral on various social media platforms, much to the dismay of the public.
Eight people were subsequently arrested and appeared in the Ondangwa Magistrate’s Court yesterday on counts of causing grievous bodily harm. They were all denied bail and the matter was postponed to 21 December for further police investigations.
Boy ‘poisoned’
Yesterday, Namibian Sun visited Iikango village in the Oniipa constituency where tensions still ran high over what transpired at the cuca shops a few nights ago. Residents were, however, reluctant to shed light on the matter.
Upon arrival at the cuca shops, it seemed like things were back to normal, but the remnants of a shack that had been burnt down harked back to the mob justice, with a villager - who preferred to remain anonymous - confirming it belonged to Kwedhi.
According to several sources, what triggered community members to beat the pensioner emanated from an incident two weeks ago.
“Two weeks ago, there was a boy from the community who bought a jug of a traditional brew [okatokele] from her cuca shop. The boy - who did not finish his drink - left and went on a journey to collect drought-relief food for his family. However, while on his way, he felt sick,” the source revealed.
“The boy went to the hospital and when he came back after a week or so, he informed community members of what transpired the day he got sick. This is what caused the community to mobilise and attack her.”
Lost loved ones
It is alleged that Kwedhi is known for poisoning community members, with allegations of her appearing before the village headman for similar cases.
According to residents, the people who were arrested over the weekend participated in the attack because they reportedly lost loved ones to poisoning over the years, with fingers constantly pointed at Kwedhi.
“Those people all believed that the loved ones they buried over the years [died as a] result of having visited [Kwedhi’s] cuca shop. [They] allegedly felt ill and died soon thereafter,” the source said.
The eight people were incriminated by the video that was shared on social media, in which they could easily be identified, the villager added.
According to community members, Kwedhi has been operating her cuca shop for more than a decade.
Attempts to track the pensioner down proved futile. She did not respond to text messages, while her phone went unanswered.
[email protected]
On Friday afternoon, community members took the law into their own hands when they used sticks and other objects to beat pensioner Paulina Tobias Kwedhi, whom they accused of poisoning her patrons. They claimed that her actions allegedly led to several deaths in the community over the years.
Over the weekend, a video of Kwedhi being beaten by villagers went viral on various social media platforms, much to the dismay of the public.
Eight people were subsequently arrested and appeared in the Ondangwa Magistrate’s Court yesterday on counts of causing grievous bodily harm. They were all denied bail and the matter was postponed to 21 December for further police investigations.
Boy ‘poisoned’
Yesterday, Namibian Sun visited Iikango village in the Oniipa constituency where tensions still ran high over what transpired at the cuca shops a few nights ago. Residents were, however, reluctant to shed light on the matter.
Upon arrival at the cuca shops, it seemed like things were back to normal, but the remnants of a shack that had been burnt down harked back to the mob justice, with a villager - who preferred to remain anonymous - confirming it belonged to Kwedhi.
According to several sources, what triggered community members to beat the pensioner emanated from an incident two weeks ago.
“Two weeks ago, there was a boy from the community who bought a jug of a traditional brew [okatokele] from her cuca shop. The boy - who did not finish his drink - left and went on a journey to collect drought-relief food for his family. However, while on his way, he felt sick,” the source revealed.
“The boy went to the hospital and when he came back after a week or so, he informed community members of what transpired the day he got sick. This is what caused the community to mobilise and attack her.”
Lost loved ones
It is alleged that Kwedhi is known for poisoning community members, with allegations of her appearing before the village headman for similar cases.
According to residents, the people who were arrested over the weekend participated in the attack because they reportedly lost loved ones to poisoning over the years, with fingers constantly pointed at Kwedhi.
“Those people all believed that the loved ones they buried over the years [died as a] result of having visited [Kwedhi’s] cuca shop. [They] allegedly felt ill and died soon thereafter,” the source said.
The eight people were incriminated by the video that was shared on social media, in which they could easily be identified, the villager added.
According to community members, Kwedhi has been operating her cuca shop for more than a decade.
Attempts to track the pensioner down proved futile. She did not respond to text messages, while her phone went unanswered.
[email protected]
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