New leads investigated in kidnapping case

THE two suspects in the kidnapping of a nine-year-old girl at Swakopmund remain in custody because new leads are being investigated that could lead to more charges against them.

The suspects, Veyonne Beukes (23) and Dylan Stramis (18), were denied bail in the Swakopmund Magistrate’s Court on Friday. Magistrate Bernhard Tjatjara ordered them to remain in custody until next Monday, when the investigation is expected to be concluded.Only then may the suspects lodge an official bail application.State prosecutor Seredine Jacobs told the magistrate that she could not give specifics about the possible new charges and that the chief of the Erongo Police Drug Enforcement Unit, Detective Inspector Martin Indongo, would reveal the details during their next appearance.The Police suspect that the kidnapping may have been related to illegal drugs.Jacobs said the case was ‘complicated and serious’ and that granting bail was not in the interest of the public.According to Beukes’s lawyer, Eugene Thomas, the possible additional charges were separate from the current charges of kidnapping and extortion and should therefore not be grounds for denying bail in the current case.’Other possible charges should be dealt with on their own merit,’ he said.Magistrate Tjatjara said it was important to first hear the details of the new facts uncovered by the Police.The two were arrested at the holiday town on December 29 for their alleged involvement in kidnapping Pauline S. (9) and demanding a ransom of N$30 000 from her parents.

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