Criminal spree gets man 62 years in jail

FORMER construction company employee Pinias Kashawa, who has been found guilty on a string of housebreaking, robbery, rape and attempted murder charges, was sentenced to an effective prison term of 62 years and four months yesterday.

Kashawa (43) has already been in jail for the past six years and almost two months after he was arrested close to the scene of a flurry of burglaries and other crimes in Okuryangava in Windhoek in April 2010.

With his sentencing in the Windhoek High Court yesterday, Judge Alfred Siboleka told Kashawa that the court had to send out a strong message to wouldbe offenders that burglaries into people’s homes and robberies accompanying such crimes would not be tolerated.

The judge noted that although Kashawa had been caught redhanded when a police officer shot him in the leg during the early morning hours of 17 April 2010, he still insisted after he was found guilty that he had done nothing wrong.

After being wounded by the police officer, Kashawa was found in possession of a pistol that had been stolen in a housebreaking on 12 April 2010, with goods that had been stolen from people during burglaries and robberies in Okuryangava still in his pockets, and with a bolt cutter which had been used to carry out burglaries in the area earlier that night.

He had been on a housebreaking spree during the night of his arrest, Judge Siboleka commented. He added that after Kashawa had been found guilty, he did not show any remorse for what he had done.

He was convicted on two charges of rape, two counts of attempted murder, two counts of housebreaking with intent to rob and robbery, one charge of housebreaking with intent to steal and theft, two counts of assault by threat and further charges of the possession of a firearm and ammunition without a licence, assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, and pointing of a firearm.

Kashawa was shot shortly after a female police officer living in Okuryangava had fought off an intruder who had attacked her in her house. The intruder also raped another woman, aged 19, twice in the house.

The officer testified during the trial that the intruder left her house with a watch, a cellphone, a necklace and a police service medal which he had stolen from her and another occupant of the house.

These items were found with Kashawa after he had been wounded.

Kashawa told the judge two weeks ago that he had been employed as a construction worker, and later made a living laying interlock paving before his arrest.

He admitted that he had also been convicted of housebreaking and theft in 2006 in connection with an incident in which a pistol, a cellphone and jewellery had been stolen, but claimed that conviction was based only on the fact that he had bought a stolen cellphone from someone.

Judge Siboleka sentenced Kashawa to 15year prison terms on each of the two rape charges, six years’ imprisonment on the two counts of attempted murder, sixyear prison terms on each of the two charges of housebreaking with intent to rob and robbery, a fouryear jail term for housebreaking with intent to steal and theft, six years’ imprisonment for illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition, two years in prison for assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, another two years behind bars for the pointing of a firearm and four months’ imprisonment for assault by threat.

With none of the sentences ordered to be served concurrently, he left the court with an effective sentence of imprisonment for 62 years and four months.

Defence lawyer Ndapewa Shipopyeni represented Kashawa on instructions from the Directorate of Legal Aid. State advocate Palmer Kumalo prosecuted.