Okahandja ‘murder’ mystery deepens

Police at both Otjozondjupa regional level and the national headquarters in Windhoek have sidestepped questions about the mysterious killings of five suspected robbers at Okahandja exactly a week ago, with Namibian Sun sent from pillar to post during the just-ended long weekend.

Police intelligence sources said the men had a criminal history and were already on the police radar for previous cases, hence the ease with which they were tracked down.

One of those killed, Marius Iipinge, was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2018 for robbing Rocha’s Hotel in Oshakati in 2007, but successfully appealed his conviction and sentence a year later.

Previous police reports indicate that Iipinge, who is from Onawa yaKilian village in the Oshana Region, escaped from jail in Lubango, Angola, in 2015, where he was kept for allegedly robbing a bank.

He and his cohorts were accused by the police of a string of crimes, ranging from murder, attempted murder, possession of firearms and ammunition, escape from lawful custody, housebreaking and theft.

However, the killings – which allegedly occurred during an exchange of fire – have sparked more questions than answers.

With the sole survivor of the skirmish allegedly having disappeared into the night, the only version of events the nation has heard so far is that of the police.

“No, not yet. He is yet to be identified,” a police source said when asked whether the suspect who supposedly got away has been apprehended.

No robbery

Officials within the Namibian Police’s crime intelligence surveillance unit told Namibian Sun they knew in advance that a robbery was planned for Okahandja’s JS Slots Gambling House, and a plan was set into motion to foil the plot.

With no robbery having taken place at the gambling house, questions are being asked as to what crime was committed on the fateful night to warrant the killings.

When Namibian Sun visited Okahandja over the weekend, workers at the gambling house said there was no commotion on the night and they only learnt about the incident the next day when the police came to check the CCTV footage at their workplace.

A senior staff member at Beefcor, a butchery adjacent to the crime scene, said the police have not yet contacted them for footage of the crime scene.

A police report by officers involved in the shooting alleged that the would-be robbers drew first blood in the exchange that ended their lives.

“On NaTIS Road, suspects started shooting at the police vehicle. Members responded back and shot five suspects who died on the spot,” officers told their bosses in a message seen by Namibian Sun.

The deafening silence from the police, exacerbated by the conspicuous omission of the incident from yesterday’s weekly police crime report, has only set the rumour mill into a further spin.

‘Like a dog’

A resident who lives nearby questioned the way the crime scene was handled.

"They just took the car with the four bodies inside and [towed] it onto something that looked like a farmer’s trailer. And the one suspect who was bleeding in the bushes was picked up like a dog and carried and tossed onto that trailer like a carcass,” the witness said.

“What is strange is that the inside of the trailer was covered with foil, when normally the bodies are covered with foil and transported by the police vehicle. We also understand that the Okahandja police only found out about the shooting the next day," the source said.

Acting Windhoek City Police chief Leevi Ileka, whose forces jointly participated in pursuing the suspects with their Namibian Police counterparts, was not willing to explain why his officers were part of the operation outside their jurisdiction. He referred all questions to the Namibian Police.

“That part of public relations is done by the Khomas regional commander David Indongo,” he said, despite the killings taking place in the Otjozondjupa Region.

Indongo had no answers either, saying “this matter must be handled at the national level”.

Otjozondupa regional police spokesperson, Chief Inspector Maureen Mbeha, also declined to comment and referred questions to Chief Inspector Elifas Kuwinga in the Namibian Police’s communications department in Windhoek.

Kuwinga told Namibian Sun that police at headquarters are busy compiling a full report into the killings, which will be shared with the media.

“We were told that the Inspector-General [Joseph Shikongo] will release the report when it is ready," he said.

Right to life

Human rights lawyer Kadhila Amoomo, who has been very vocal on the incident, said police must crawl out from under their rocks of silence and pronounce themselves on the killings.

"The police owe the public a duty to disclose the full circumstances surrounding the killing of the five young men. This will eradicate accusations and rumourmongering,” he said.

“Article 6 of the Namibian Constitution makes it plain that everyone has a right to life. This is the reason why the death penalty was abolished in Namibia. It is easy to argue that the police did a good job, but how many times did the police get it wrong?”

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