Scissors murder: Afrikaner found guilty
• Sentencing proceedings begin March
A man accused of murdering his romantic partner six years ago by stabbing her multiple times with a pair of scissors has been found guilty.
High Court judge Claudia Claasen on Friday convicted 44-year-old Rodney Afrikaner of the fatal attack on his partner, Patricia Hochobes (39), in the Hakahana informal settlement of Windhoek in February 2019.
Afrikaner, who pleaded not guilty, was accused of stabbing Hochobes six times with a pair of scissors while she was breastfeeding their seven-month-old baby.
The State, represented by prosecutor Tangeni Itula, argued that Afrikaner had stabbed Hochobes multiple times in her thigh and leg, leading to her death due to blood loss.
Afrikaner, who represented himself throughout his trial, told the court during his closing submissions that if he had intended to kill Hochobes, he would have stabbed her in the neck.
\"The death was a coincidence; I did not know someone could die from stab wounds inflicted on the lower part of the body,\" he argued.
The court described his explanation as a \"misplaced perception”.
\"He made the decision to deliberately hold on to the scissors and stab several times. He further solidified his intentions when he left the house to sleep elsewhere, leaving her to bleed out,\" judge Claasen said in her ruling.
The case has been postponed to 20 March for sentencing procedures.
Deadly fight
On the evening of 9 February 2019, Hochobes and Afrikaner became embroiled in a verbal altercation that escalated into a physical confrontation, the court heard during the trial.
During the argument, Afrikaner slapped Hochobes and then grabbed a pair of scissors from beneath the bed they shared.
The court heard that while Hochobes was sitting on their bed, Afrikaner stabbed her six times, as confirmed by the postmortem results, with a wound inflicted on her thigh.
High Court judge Claudia Claasen on Friday convicted 44-year-old Rodney Afrikaner of the fatal attack on his partner, Patricia Hochobes (39), in the Hakahana informal settlement of Windhoek in February 2019.
Afrikaner, who pleaded not guilty, was accused of stabbing Hochobes six times with a pair of scissors while she was breastfeeding their seven-month-old baby.
The State, represented by prosecutor Tangeni Itula, argued that Afrikaner had stabbed Hochobes multiple times in her thigh and leg, leading to her death due to blood loss.
Afrikaner, who represented himself throughout his trial, told the court during his closing submissions that if he had intended to kill Hochobes, he would have stabbed her in the neck.
\"The death was a coincidence; I did not know someone could die from stab wounds inflicted on the lower part of the body,\" he argued.
The court described his explanation as a \"misplaced perception”.
\"He made the decision to deliberately hold on to the scissors and stab several times. He further solidified his intentions when he left the house to sleep elsewhere, leaving her to bleed out,\" judge Claasen said in her ruling.
The case has been postponed to 20 March for sentencing procedures.
Deadly fight
On the evening of 9 February 2019, Hochobes and Afrikaner became embroiled in a verbal altercation that escalated into a physical confrontation, the court heard during the trial.
During the argument, Afrikaner slapped Hochobes and then grabbed a pair of scissors from beneath the bed they shared.
The court heard that while Hochobes was sitting on their bed, Afrikaner stabbed her six times, as confirmed by the postmortem results, with a wound inflicted on her thigh.
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