Suspect recalls beer, whiskey – but not shooting

MURDER suspect Gert Hermanus (‘Hansie’) Losper cannot remember shooting dead his wife at Karibib in December 2004, it was claimed at the start of Losper’s trial in the High Court in Windhoek this week.

Losper’s trial began before Judge Collins Parker on Monday, when Losper (56), a South African national, pleaded not guilty to murder and assault by threat. He is accused of murdering his wife, Elizabeth Maria (‘Bessie’) Snyders (41), in her brother’s house at Karibib on December 8 2004.Losper is further accused of having threatened to shoot a daughter of his wife, Chandy Snyders, on the same evening that Bessie Snyders was shot dead.In a plea explanation handed to Judge Parker on Monday, Losper stated that he left Cape Town on December 7 2004 to travel to Karibib to visit his wife.He suffers from diabetes and heart problems, Losper added in his written plea statement.While on the road to Namibia he did not eat or take his medication, Losper stated.”I had a few beers on the road because it was hot,” he added.He related that after arriving at Karibib he discovered that he had his revolver with him in a bag.He then realised that he did not declare the revolver at the Namibian border and “got scared”, Losper stated.”For that reason I had three double whiskeys at a bar,” Losper continued.He related that he then went to greet his wife, and she informed him that she wanted a divorce.The news left him shocked and sad, and he ran to the bathroom, where he started crying, Losper stated.The first thing he remembers after that was hearing his daughter saying, “Daddy, daddy, stop,” Losper added.He stated that his defence was one of “sane automatism” or “non-pathological criminal incapacity” – in layman’s terms, that he was in a temporary mental state in which he acted automatically and could not be held accountable for his actions.One of the late Bessie Snyder’s daughters, who is now 16 years old, testified on Monday that Losper arrived at her uncle’s house at about half past ten on the evening of December 8 2004.After her mother had asked her to serve some food to Losper, she heard Losper speaking to her mother and asking her to reconsider divorcing him.The mood was tense and an argument started, she told the Judge.She eventually went to the kitchen to get herself something to drink, and when she went back to the lounge, she saw Losper standing with a gun in his hand, the girl said.She testified that she heard the sound of a slap, and ran to the lounge, when Losper kicked her against a door.When her mother rushed closer, asking Losper what he was doing with her daughter, a first shot went off, the girl testified.She said she got up from where she was hiding under a table, and could see Losper shaking her mother, who was kneeling on the floor at that stage, asking her why she did not listen to him, and telling her that had she listened to him, “these things would not have happened”.Losper next forced her to take him to a public telephone, where he made a call and she could hear him telling someone that he had shot his wife and that he was going to return to the house to shoot the children and himself too.The girl managed to run away from Losper at the phone booth, and reported the shooting to the driver of a vehicle that was passing by at that stage, before she was taken to the local Police station to raise the alarm, she testified.In a bedroom back at the house where Snyders had been shot, her son and his cousin, aged nine, were lying in bed at that time.The cousin told Judge Parker yesterday that he heard the first shot go off.The house went quiet after that, and he just prayed, the boy said.After that, Losper left for a while, the boy testified.When Losper returned, he said, he heard another three shots going off, and then the house was quiet and dark again.He was afraid that Losper was going to shoot him and his cousin too, and so he prayed, the boy testified.He asked permission from Judge Parker to say “something small” to “Mister Losper” at the end of his testimony.When given the go-ahead, the boy said to his aunt’s alleged murderer: “I just want to tell Mister Losper, have a nice day and may God bless you.”Losper is alleged to have shot Snyders at least four times in her chest and neck.He then allegedly tried to kill himself by shooting himself in the head.He only managed to wound himself in the chin, though.A brother-in-law of Snyders, Dirk Moller, who was one of the first people to arrive at the scene after the Police had been summoned, told Judge Parker on Monday that Snyders was found lying in a pool of blood.Losper was lying on top of her, Moller and other witnesses who were at the house have testified so far.A blood trail that led out of the house, where bloodstains were found on a veranda and leading up to the roof, prompted a search on the roof of the house, where a .38 Special revolver that is alleged to be the murder weapon was found.The trial is continuing today.State advocate Belinda Wantenaar is prosecuting.Legal Aid Directorate counsel Duard Kesslau is representing Losper, who is free on bail.He is accused of murdering his wife, Elizabeth Maria (‘Bessie’) Snyders (41), in her brother’s house at Karibib on December 8 2004.Losper is further accused of having threatened to shoot a daughter of his wife, Chandy Snyders, on the same evening that Bessie Snyders was shot dead.In a plea explanation handed to Judge Parker on Monday, Losper stated that he left Cape Town on December 7 2004 to travel to Karibib to visit his wife.He suffers from diabetes and heart problems, Losper added in his written plea statement.While on the road to Namibia he did not eat or take his medication, Losper stated.”I had a few beers on the road because it was hot,” he added. He related that after arriving at Karibib he discovered that he had his revolver with him in a bag.He then realised that he did not declare the revolver at the Namibian border and “got scared”, Losper stated.”For that reason I had three double whiskeys at a bar,” Losper continued.He related that he then went to greet his wife, and she informed him that she wanted a divorce.The news left him shocked and sad, and he ran to the bathroom, where he started crying, Losper stated.The first thing he remembers after that was hearing his daughter saying, “Daddy, daddy, stop,” Losper added.He stated that his defence was one of “sane automatism” or “non-pathological criminal incapacity” – in layman’s terms, that he was in a temporary mental state in which he acted automatically and could not be held accountable for his actions.One of the late Bessie Snyder’s daughters, who is now 16 years old, testified on Monday that Losper arrived at her uncle’s house at about half past ten on the evening of December 8 2004.After her mother had asked her to serve some food to Losper, she heard Losper speaking to her mother and asking her to reconsider divorcing him.The mood was tense and an argument started, she told the Judge.She eventually went to the kitchen to get herself something to drink, and when she went back to the lounge, she saw Losper standing with a gun in his hand, the girl said.She testified that she heard the sound of a slap, and ran to the lounge, when Losper kicked her against a door.When her mother rushed closer, asking Losper what he was doing with her daughter, a first shot went off, the girl testified.She said she got up from where she was hiding under a table, and could see Losper shaking her mother, who was kneeling on the floor at that stage, asking her why she did not listen to him, and telling her that had she listened to him, “these things would not have happened”.Losper next forced her to take him to a public telephone, where he made a call and she could hear him telling someone that he had shot his wife and that he was going to return to the house to shoot the children and himself too.The girl managed to run away from Losper at the phone booth, and reported the shooting to the driver of a vehicle that was passing by at that stage, before she was taken to the local Police station to raise the alarm, she testified.In a bedroom back at the house
where Snyders had been shot, her son and his cousin, aged nine, were lying in bed at that time.The cousin told Judge Parker yesterday that he heard the first shot go off.The house went quiet after that, and he just prayed, the boy said.After that, Losper left for a while, the boy testified.When Losper returned, he said, he heard another three shots going off, and then the house was quiet and dark again.He was afraid that Losper was going to shoot him and his cousin too, and so he prayed, the boy testified.He asked permission from Judge Parker to say “something small” to “Mister Losper” at the end of his testimony.When given the go-ahead, the boy said to his aunt’s alleged murderer: “I just want to tell Mister Losper, have a nice day and may God bless you.”Losper is alleged to have shot Snyders at least four times in her chest and neck.He then allegedly tried to kill himself by shooting himself in the head.He only managed to wound himself in the chin, though.A brother-in-law of Snyders, Dirk Moller, who was one of the first people to arrive at the scene after the Police had been summoned, told Judge Parker on Monday that Snyders was found lying in a pool of blood.Losper was lying on top of her, Moller and other witnesses who were at the house have testified so far.A blood trail that led out of the house, where bloodstains were found on a veranda and leading up to the roof, prompted a search on the roof of the house, where a .38 Special revolver that is alleged to be the murder weapon was found.The trial is continuing today.State advocate Belinda Wantenaar is prosecuting.Legal Aid Directorate counsel Duard Kesslau is representing Losper, who is free on bail.