“Anger, hurt and resentment” were the driving forces that prompted a police officer to kill his former romantic partner by stabbing her with a knife at Keetmanshoop in June 2021.
Former police officer Morgan Plaatjie (46) stated this in a written plea explanation after admitting guilt on four charges in the Windhoek High Court yesterday.
Plaatjie admitted before judge Dinnah Usiku that he murdered his former romantic partner, Yvette Louw (38), at her home at Keetmanshoop during the night of 25 to 26 June 2021 by stabbing her repeatedly with a knife.
He also admitted that a domestic violence protection order issued against him in August 2020, after Louw applied for the order, was still in force when he carried out the fatal attack on her.
Plaatjie admitted guilt on charges of murder, assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, contravening a domestic violence protection order, and malicious damage to property.
He denied guilt on a second charge of contravening a domestic violence protection order and a count of assault by threat.
Plaatjie was a warrant officer attached to the Namibian Police’s unit for the investigation of gender-based violence cases at Keetmanshoop before he was arrested in connection with Louw’s death.
Louw was employed at the Keetmanshoop municipality before her death.
In his plea statement, Plaatjie said he and Louw had an argument about fidelity at her house on 7 May 2021.
Plaatjie added that according to him he and Louw were still involved in a romantic relationship at that stage.
He said after the argument he damaged a television set belonging to Louw. He did that out of anger, Plaatjie said.
He also said his romantic relationship with Louw had ended by 25 June 2021, when he received a phone call from a woman who told him Louw had asked her to inform him that she was involved in a relationship with another man, who was the real father of Plaatjie’s daughter with Louw.
At the time he received that phone call, he was on bail after he had been charged with breaching the domestic violence protection order issued against him in August 2020, Plaatjie said as well.
The claim that his daughter had been fathered by another man left him devastated, Plaatjie stated.
He continued that he drank brandy, beer and wine during that evening, before he drove to Louw’s house.
He found Louw and the man he had been told about at her house, Plaatjie said.
He added that he asked Louw if that was the father of their daughter, and the man replied “yes, only a stupid c*** like you would raise another man’s child”.
Plaatjie recounted: “This made me furious, and I saw a knife, grabbed it and went to [Louw] and stabbed her multiple times.”
He stabbed Louw “out of anger, hurt and resentment”, Plaatjie stated.
He also said when the man in Louw’s company tried to intervene, he stabbed the man several times as well.
Plaatjie admitted in his plea statement that he wanted to end Louw’s life when he stabbed her. He said he did not intend to kill Louw’s companion, though, but wanted to seriously injure him.
With respect to the two charges on which he denied guilt, defence lawyer Boris Isaacks informed the judge that Plaatjie is saying he had Louw’s permission to visit her house on 7 May 2021, while there was a domestic violence protection order forbidding him from going to her house.
Plaatjie is also denying that he threatened to kill or assault Louw when he visited her house on that occasion, Isaacks said.
Plaatjie has been held in custody since his arrest after Louw was murdered.
His trial is continuing before Usiku today.
State advocate Anna Amukugo is representing the prosecution.
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