Charges dropped in Witbooi hit-and-run accident

A LEONARDVILLE area farmer who has been accused of killing and seriously injuring two relatives of former Deputy Prime Minister Hendrik Witbooi in a hit-and-run accident in Windhoek almost two and a half years ago is off the hook – for now at least.

All the charges that had been pending against farmer Gideon de Waal (36) since his arrest on September 30 2003, nine days after he had allegedly been involved in a fatal hit-and-run accident in Windhoek, were withdrawn when he made his latest appearance in the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court yesterday. De Waal’s trial – in which he was to face six charges, including a count of culpable homicide – had been set to start for the second time in less than a year yesterday.That was not to be, though, and instead De Waal was in the dock before Magistrate Olivia Mutjavikua for less than five minutes before he was told that he was free to go as the case against him had been withdrawn.Senior Public Prosecutor Christopher Stanley only informed the Magistrate that the State was withdrawing the charges.However, later yesterday, he told The Namibian that the prosecution against De Waal would “definitely” continue at a later stage.Stanley said he had decided, after studying the Police’s docket on the case, that several issues needed to be investigated further before the State would be able to go to court with a case in which all necessary chains of evidence had been properly linked.He said he hoped that the additional investigations would be finalised within a month’s time.The case against De Waal will be resurrected once that had been done, he added.”There is evidence to support more than one offence,” Stanley said.Yesterday’s turn of events was the second time that the case against De Waal had been thrown off course in the past ten months.A first attempt to get his trial going in April last year ended when the High Court issued an urgent order stopping the proceedings, after De Waal’s lawyer, Hennie Barnard, had withdrawn and the presiding Magistrate then refused to give De Waal another chance to get legal representation before the matter was to go on.The High Court eventually ordered that, because De Waal had grounds to perceive that he would not be receiving a fair trial before that Magistrate, another Magistrate should preside at the trial.De Waal is accused of having crashed the car that he was driving along Windhoek’s Robert Mugabe Avenue into two pedestrians, Dawid Dirk Petersen (27) and Mildred Witbooi, on September 21 2003.Petersen, who was the grandson of a sister of the former Deputy Prime Minister, died from the injuries that he sustained in the accident.Mildred Witbooi, who is a granddaughter of the former Deputy Premier, was seriously injured, but survived the crash.De Waal, who lives at the farm Rus-en-Vrede in the Leonardville area, was arrested about a week after the accident.He was set to face charges of culpable homicide, defeating or obstructing the course of justice, reckless or negligent driving, failing to stop a vehicle and to ascertain injuries sustained after an accident, failing to render assistance to injured people after an accident, and removing a vehicle from the place of an accident.De Waal’s trial – in which he was to face six charges, including a count of culpable homicide – had been set to start for the second time in less than a year yesterday.That was not to be, though, and instead De Waal was in the dock before Magistrate Olivia Mutjavikua for less than five minutes before he was told that he was free to go as the case against him had been withdrawn.Senior Public Prosecutor Christopher Stanley only informed the Magistrate that the State was withdrawing the charges.However, later yesterday, he told The Namibian that the prosecution against De Waal would “definitely” continue at a later stage.Stanley said he had decided, after studying the Police’s docket on the case, that several issues needed to be investigated further before the State would be able to go to court with a case in which all necessary chains of evidence had been properly linked.He said he hoped that the additional investigations would be finalised within a month’s time.The case against De Waal will be resurrected once that had been done, he added.”There is evidence to support more than one offence,” Stanley said.Yesterday’s turn of events was the second time that the case against De Waal had been thrown off course in the past ten months.A first attempt to get his trial going in April last year ended when the High Court issued an urgent order stopping the proceedings, after De Waal’s lawyer, Hennie Barnard, had withdrawn and the presiding Magistrate then refused to give De Waal another chance to get legal representation before the matter was to go on.The High Court eventually ordered that, because De Waal had grounds to perceive that he would not be receiving a fair trial before that Magistrate, another Magistrate should preside at the trial.De Waal is accused of having crashed the car that he was driving along Windhoek’s Robert Mugabe Avenue into two pedestrians, Dawid Dirk Petersen (27) and Mildred Witbooi, on September 21 2003.Petersen, who was the grandson of a sister of the former Deputy Prime Minister, died from the injuries that he sustained in the accident.Mildred Witbooi, who is a granddaughter of the former Deputy Premier, was seriously injured, but survived the crash.De Waal, who lives at the farm Rus-en-Vrede in the Leonardville area, was arrested about a week after the accident.He was set to face charges of culpable homicide, defeating or obstructing the course of justice, reckless or negligent driving, failing to stop a vehicle and to ascertain injuries sustained after an accident, failing to render assistance to injured people after an accident, and removing a vehicle from the place of an accident.