Man jailed for lover’s murder

KOËS resident Moses Lambert (33), who fatally stabbed his girlfriend in a quarrel over a broken radio, has been jailed for an effective five years.
The stabbing that claimed the life of Ragel Basson happened on December 7 2007 at Koës village in the South.

Lambert pleaded guilty to a charge of culpable homicide during his trial in the Keetmanshoop Regional Court. Keetmanshoop Regional Court Magistrate Godwin Chizande on Friday sentenced him to eight years in prison, of which three years were suspended. He said Basson’s death was caused by a deliberate and voluntarily action, although Lambert had not intended to murder her.’Violence is not the only way to settle disputes, therefore the courts must impose an adequate sentence to deter the accused and like-minded offenders,’ said Chizande.Defence counsel Stephanus Coetzee had called for a wholly suspended sentence, saying that Lambert had shown remorse and did not waste the time of the court by pleading not guilty.But State Prosecutor Veiko Alexander argued that it was a serious case and that there was a public outcry for harsher sentences in cases of domestic violence.luqman@namibian.com.na