Alleged wife killer dies

Windhoek resident Elvis Mieze, who was on trial in the High Court for allegedly stabbing his wife to death and keeping her body in their shack in Katutura for three days in October 2016, has died.

Mieze passed away on 19 March in a local hospital. He had been held in the Windhoek prison's trial-awaiting section.

His death was officially confirmed by State advocate Karin Esterhuizen before his trial was to resume before Judge Naomi Shivute yesterday morning.

A death certificate was presented to the court.

The matter was subsequently struck from the roll.

Defence lawyer Milton Engelbrecht was representing the accused.

At the beginning of the trial on 31 July 2018, Mieze denied murdering his wife, Gedrud Vaanda Tjihuiko, and attempting to defeat or obstruct the course of justice.

At the time, Mieze did not offer any explanation for his plea and challenged the prosecution to prove all the allegations against him. Tjihuiko (44) was stabbed to death with a sharp object, allegedly by Mieze, who stored her body in their shack for three days.

When the body started to decompose, Mieze confided in his uncle, who alerted the police.

Nampa