THE woman who was arrested in connection with the death of another woman after a failed illegal abortion, made a brief appearance in the Ondangwa Magistrate’s Court court today.
Ndinelao Mathilde Mathias (age unknown) appeared before magistrate Peter Nangula on two counts, namely murder and inducing an abortion. The state alleges that Mathias committed murder when she induced an illegal abortion on Jahiteeri Nuujoma, who died on Sunday at Ondangwa. Nuujoma died in Mathias’s room, where she had been kept over the weekend for the abortion to happen.
State prosecutor Ester Embanga informed magistrate Nangula that the state opposed bail for Mathias because of the seriousness of the charges, because investigations were still at a sensitive stage, and that Mathias might interfere with the investigations. Clad in black, Mathias informed the court that she would conduct her own defence. However, after the magistrate informed her about the seriousness of the charges, she changed her mind, and said she would apply for a state-funded lawyer. Her case was then postponed to 28 April to allow police investigations to continue, and for her to apply for legal representation. She was also advised to lodge a formal bail application.
Nuujoma was found close to death in Mathias’s room at the Okuryangava location of Ondangwa on Sunday morning. Preliminary police reports and eyewitnesses said that Nuujoma had gone to Mathias and another accused, who is on the run, to get an abortion. She was then requested to stay at the accused’s house until the foetus was ejected from her body. To induce the abortion, Nuujoma was given potions and concoctions to drink. The potions and concoctions are suspected to have caused her death.
Stay informed with The Namibian – your source for credible journalism. Get in-depth reporting and opinions for
only N$85 a month. Invest in journalism, invest in democracy –
Subscribe Now!
