Africa-Press – Namibia. The charges faced by former minister of agriculture, fisheries, water and land reform Mac Hengari after his arrest seven weeks ago must be rejected as invalid, because they are premised on a rape charge against Hengari that does not exist, a lawyer argued in the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court yesterday.
Addressing magistrate Monica Andjaba during Hengari’s fourth court appearance since his arrest on 26 April, defence lawyer Patrick Kauta argued that the three charges against Hengari and a co-accused should be quashed.
Kauta argued that the charges are based on allegations that Hengari and his co-accused tried to induce a woman to withdraw a rape charge against Hengari – but that this is an impossibility, as Hengari has not been charged with rape to date.
Hengari’s co-accused is not being named because he is related to a complainant in a rape case registered with the police.
Kauta said “as a matter of fact and law” Hengari has not been charged with rape. “So you can’t induce somebody to withdraw something that doesn’t exist,” he added.
On behalf of the state, though, deputy prosecutor general Filistas Shikerete-Vendura argued that Kauta’s objection to the charges is premature.
The charges against Hengari and his co-accused are preliminary at this stage, and only once the investigation of the matter has been concluded, will the prosecutor general be able to decide the final charges they will face and in which court they should stand trial, Shikerete-Vendura said.
It is only once the charges have been finalised and put to the accused that they can object to the charges, she argued. The application to have the charges thrown out of court is “baseless” and “not sound in law”, Shikerete-Vendura argued as well.
Hengari and his co-accused are charged with a count of defeating or obstructing the course of justice, with the state alleging that they gave N$220 200 to a complainant in a rape case registered against Hengari, to induce her to withdraw the rape charge.
The money is alleged to have been handed over to the complainant during a meeting between her, Hengari and the co-accused in Windhoek on 26 April.
They are also charged with a count of corruptly giving gratification, with the state alleging that N$220 200 was given to the rape complainant on 26 April as an inducement for her to withdraw the rape charge against Hengari.
The third charge against Hengari and the second accused is a count of incitement to commit the offence of compounding, which is to unlawfully withdraw a criminal case after being paid to do so.
Kauta also argued that the magistrate does not have a discretion to again direct that Hengari and the second accused should be held in custody until a next appearance in court.
However, the magistrate already ruled last week that the case can be postponed, and declined to order that the arrest of Hengari and his co-accused was unlawful, which Kauta also argued for.
After hearing the arguments yesterday, Andjaba said she would need some time to properly consider the matter. She postponed the delivery of her ruling on the defence’s objection to the charges to 4 July.
Hengari and the second accused are still to be held in custody in the meantime.
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