Woman who hacked brother’s limbs acquitted of his murder

NDAPANDULA Jafet, a 28-year-old village woman accused of having murdered her brother by chopping off his hands and feet, has been found not guilty of his death.

Jafet, from Oinikaanika village near Omungwelume in Omusati Region, was at the centre of one of the most shocking events in post-Independence Namibia, when she severed the limbs of her brother, David Moses Halwoodi (33), on the evening of July 31 2001. Halwoodi died seven days later in Oshakati State Hospital.Magistrate Paulus Noah found Jafet not guilty in the Oshakati Regional Court last Wednesday.Ndapandula had told the court that she was defending herself from Halwoodi, who wanted to kill her with a panga.Ndapandula’s mother, meme Asteria Didileni, who testified in support of her daughter, told the court that Jafet was defending not only herself but the whole family.She told the court that earlier that day Halwoodi – who was attacked in his parents’ house – had made it clear he wanted to kill everyone in the house.”He was a very bad person and it is good and safe that he went that way, we do not want him back again, if it could [happen], and my daughter is not guilty, she was protecting herself and we all,” meme Didileni said.The court heard that earlier on the day of the attack Halwoodi had gone into village cuca shops to sharpen his panga, apparently with the express purpose of killing Ndapandula, meme Didileni, his other sisters and his brothers.According to Ndapandula and her mother, Halwoodi arrived home late in the evening armed with a panga and started to chase Ndapandula, saying he was going to kill her and the family because they hated him.The court was told that Ndapandula had picked up a stick and hit Halwoodi on the arm, causing the panga to drop.She picked it up and started to strike at Halwoodi, cutting him on the head and arms.Halwoodi fell to the ground and Ndapandula continued striking at him and cut off his arms and feet.A relative alerted the neighbours who went to fetch the Omungwelume Police.Magistrate Noah accepted the evidence of Ndapandula and Halwoodi’s mother, in particular Ndapandula’s plea of self-defence.Halwoodi died seven days later in Oshakati State Hospital. Magistrate Paulus Noah found Jafet not guilty in the Oshakati Regional Court last Wednesday. Ndapandula had told the court that she was defending herself from Halwoodi, who wanted to kill her with a panga. Ndapandula’s mother, meme Asteria Didileni, who testified in support of her daughter, told the court that Jafet was defending not only herself but the whole family. She told the court that earlier that day Halwoodi – who was attacked in his parents’ house – had made it clear he wanted to kill everyone in the house. “He was a very bad person and it is good and safe that he went that way, we do not want him back again, if it could [happen], and my daughter is not guilty, she was protecting herself and we all,” meme Didileni said. The court heard that earlier on the day of the attack Halwoodi had gone into village cuca shops to sharpen his panga, apparently with the express purpose of killing Ndapandula, meme Didileni, his other sisters and his brothers. According to Ndapandula and her mother, Halwoodi arrived home late in the evening armed with a panga and started to chase Ndapandula, saying he was going to kill her and the family because they hated him. The court was told that Ndapandula had picked up a stick and hit Halwoodi on the arm, causing the panga to drop. She picked it up and started to strike at Halwoodi, cutting him on the head and arms. Halwoodi fell to the ground and Ndapandula continued striking at him and cut off his arms and feet. A relative alerted the neighbours who went to fetch the Omungwelume Police. Magistrate Noah accepted the evidence of Ndapandula and Halwoodi’s mother, in particular Ndapandula’s plea of self-defence.