Kavango man killed grandfather for ‘bewitching’ him

Kandere Shinkanda (30), who allegedly shot and killed his 84-year-old grandfather last Monday at Mabushe village in the Kavango East Region, had previously complained of having sleepless nights and dreams of having sex with the deceased. Kandere was arrested just a day before the second suspect, self-proclaimed traditional healer Linyando Murayi (38), handed himself over to the police.Murayi allegedly previously told Kandere that his grandfather was a witch.This was revealed during a Namibian Sun probe into the death of Mbambi Shinkanda, who succumbed to a gunshot wound to the chest on 11 September. He was allegedly shot with an AK47 automatic assault rifle.The incident happened around 19:30 while Mbambi was having dinner with his wife, Annarosa Kashova Mungenga (92). Mungenga was shot in the left thigh, but survived the shooting and is recovering in the Rundu State Hospital. She was not present yesterday when her husband was laid to rest in Mabushe.DreamsNarrating what led to her father’s tragic death, Solastic Mbambi said she was at home when the incident took place.“I heard the first shot and I then heard my mother screaming. Then I heard the second shot. There was nothing I could do because I was also afraid for my life,” she said.“After the shooting, we saw no one and we started mourning our father who died immediately.”When asked what could have led to Kandere shooting his own grandfather, Solastic and other relatives explained that the incident might be the result of dreams the suspect had been having, which were causing him sleepless nights. In the dreams, the suspect was allegedly having sex with his both grandfather and the older man’s wife.“Last year, Kandere called his father to confide in him about the lack of sleep he was having as a result of my parents [Mbambi and Mungenga] apparently having sexual intercourse with him in his sleep. His father told him to share that information with those whom he accused of doing that to him.“He then contacted my father [Mbambi] and told him what he was dreaming about. My father did not take it well,” she said.“Kandere and his father were summoned to the house and he was adamant that he was certain of what he was dreaming.“The matter was referred to a traditional healer and it ended there.”Traditional healer“At some point, Kandere even came to apologise and few months ago, he came to introduce to us his new girlfriend and he was all fine,” Solastic said.She added that she is still dumbfounded about what happened.When asked about Murayi, she said they know him because he is the traditional healer who was helping one of her late brothers, who was sickly.Solastic said there was tension between Murayi and her late father, which was the result of N$5 000 paid to the traditional healer.The matter ended up in traditional court, with the deceased claiming N$1 000 of his payment back as he argued that N$5 000 was too much and he had lost his son.WitchMeanwhile, community members alleged that Mbambi was accused of being a witch as he allegedly took away his grandchildren’s luck.“People used to accuse the deceased of being a witch and that he was doing it to the grandchildren. They were not progressing in life because of him,” a source, who preferred to remain anonymous, said.“What people are saying is that the traditional healer told the grandson that his grandfather was responsible for his suffering and not securing a job, and that is what triggered him to go and shoot his grandparents.”Bail deniedKandere was arrested on Monday in Angola, while Murayi - who had also fled to Angola but returned to Mbwata village where he is from - handed himself over to the police on Tuesday. The police retrieved the alleged murder weapon and seven rounds of live ammunition.The suspects appeared before Magistrate Selma Shiiga at the Ndiyona Periodic Court on Wednesday.They were denied bail and the matter was postponed to 16 January 2024 for further police investigations and for the suspects to obtain legal representation.kenya@namibiansun.com

Kavango man killed grandfather for ‘bewitching’ him

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Namibian Sun 2025-08-04

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Kavango man killed grandfather for ‘bewitching’ him

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Namibian Sun 2025-08-04

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