By Foibe Paavo
SWAKOPMUND, 20 April 2022- A well-known stock theft suspect who Namibian police have been searching for since last March, Isak Kokombe, made his first appearance in the Karibib Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday when his case was remanded until 30 May. He was not granted bail, according to Inspector Shapumba Ileni in a police report issued in Swakopmund.
Kokombe will appear in the Omaruru Magistrate’s Court on Thursday where he will also face charges of armed robbery and stock theft. He was arrested on the farm Etiro-mund in the Karibib district after information was received from the public.
The police said investigation followed an attack on the farm Otjumue Nord in the Omaruru district last March where four armed men arrived at a homestead asking for water. They claimed their car had broken down around 20 km away and they had left women behind with the vehicle.
When two victims, a male of 22 and a 23-year-old female, opened the door to the men they were overpowered, tied up and blindfolded.
The suspects then allegedly went to the kraal where they slaughtered 24 sheep, five goats and three cattle with a combined value of N$63 000. They then reportedly contacted accomplices with vehicles to collect the carcasses. The thieves also made off with other items including cell phones and a generator worth N$69 800 in total.
The victims freed themselves and ran to Omborondo village where they received help.
Police later arrested three male suspects, aged 48, 33 and 36, at Swakopmund and they subsequently appeared in court at Omaruru. Some stolen items were also recovered and vehicles used in committing the offences were impounded.
About six well known suspects some from Otjimbingwe and Omatjette areas, who were thought to reside in Swakopmund, were still on the run and the police continued with their investigations. They asked lthe public for information to help catch the criminals. – Namibia Daily News
