Lawyer’s absence delays murder trial
The trial of the American citizens charged with the murder of Andre Heckmair more than five years ago was postponed yesterday because the lawyer of one of the accused was absent.
The Windhoek High Court was expected to hear the evidence of clinical psychologist Willem Annandale on the mental state of one of the two accused, Marcus Kevin Tomas, who was already diagnosed by two psychiatrists as capable of understanding the court proceedings and therefore fit to stand trial.
The case was postponed to 3 October for hearing Annandale’s evidence and to 4 October for arguments.
Thomas (31) and Kevin Donell Townsend (30) are accused of having murdered Heckmair (25) in Windhoek on 7 January 2011.
They allegedly planned the killing and travelled from the USA to Namibia near the end of December 2010 to murder him.
Heckmair’s body was found in a car in a in a street in Klein Windhoek. He had been shot in the head. The two suspects were arrested at a Windhoek guest house on the evening of 7 January 2011.
Dr Reinhardt Sieberhagen, Windhoek psychiatrist, and Tuviah Zabow, emeritus professor from the University of Cape Town, had testified during earlier proceedings that Thomas is not suffering from a mental defect and is capable of understanding the proceedings.
They examined Thomas after a state psychiatrist reported to the court last year that Thomas had a neurocognitive disorder, due to a head injury sustained in a fall, and was not fit to stand trial.
He allegedly fell on in his head during an attempted escape from the Windhoek Central Prison in November 2014.
Zabow found that there was no evidence of brain damage and that Thomas did not suffer from any major mental illness.
Sieberhagen added in his report that Thomas fabricated alleged symptoms of a head injury.
FRED GOEIEMAN
The Windhoek High Court was expected to hear the evidence of clinical psychologist Willem Annandale on the mental state of one of the two accused, Marcus Kevin Tomas, who was already diagnosed by two psychiatrists as capable of understanding the court proceedings and therefore fit to stand trial.
The case was postponed to 3 October for hearing Annandale’s evidence and to 4 October for arguments.
Thomas (31) and Kevin Donell Townsend (30) are accused of having murdered Heckmair (25) in Windhoek on 7 January 2011.
They allegedly planned the killing and travelled from the USA to Namibia near the end of December 2010 to murder him.
Heckmair’s body was found in a car in a in a street in Klein Windhoek. He had been shot in the head. The two suspects were arrested at a Windhoek guest house on the evening of 7 January 2011.
Dr Reinhardt Sieberhagen, Windhoek psychiatrist, and Tuviah Zabow, emeritus professor from the University of Cape Town, had testified during earlier proceedings that Thomas is not suffering from a mental defect and is capable of understanding the proceedings.
They examined Thomas after a state psychiatrist reported to the court last year that Thomas had a neurocognitive disorder, due to a head injury sustained in a fall, and was not fit to stand trial.
He allegedly fell on in his head during an attempted escape from the Windhoek Central Prison in November 2014.
Zabow found that there was no evidence of brain damage and that Thomas did not suffer from any major mental illness.
Sieberhagen added in his report that Thomas fabricated alleged symptoms of a head injury.
FRED GOEIEMAN
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