By: Eba Kandovazu
Johannes Hausiku, a former Outjo farmer charged with child murder and various rape charges was sentenced to an effective 35 years imprisonment, after countlessly being sent for mental and psychiatric evaluation.
He, in 2020, underwent mental observation and was found fit to stand trial.
In 2016, state psychiatrist Hilen Ndjaba diagnosed Hausiku with schizophrenia, declaring him unfit to stand trial and prompting the state to ask for another mental observation. Hausiku reportedly could not understand court proceedings and therefore could not properly defend himself. Additionally, at the time of the commission of the offenses, he was mentally unstable and as such could not understand and appreciate the wrongfulness of his actions, according to Dr. Ndjaba testified in 2016.
Hausiku kidnapped, raped, and attempted to rape a drunk woman, before murdering her two-year-old son. Thereafter, he told the woman that she should report to the police that four men attacked her and her son. This, the state argued, was an attempt to defeat the course of justice.
In another instance, Hausiku kidnapped, robbed, and raped another woman in Outjo. She was on her way home from a shebeen. In the third instance, he also attempted to rape a woman who was also walking home from a shebeen. These cases were reported in 2012.
Defense Lawyer Theo Carolus represented Hausiku, with Ethel Ndlovu appearing for the state.
