American national Kevan Townsend, convicted of murdering André Heckmair, on Tuesday asked the court to sentence him to seven years imprisonment, of which five years are suspended for a period of five years.
If the request is granted, it means 37-year-old Townsend will serve two years for the murder. He made the submission through his lawyer Mbanga Siyomunji, as part of the mitigation process before sentencing. Siyomunji argued that the appropriate sentence is 20 years, of which his client has already served 13 years.
Townsend’s co-accused, Marcus Thomas, requested that he be sentenced to 20 years, of which 12 years should be suspended, amounting to an eight-year sentence. The two men based their requests on the fact that they have spent nearly 13 years in jail since the murder occurred in 2011.
Thomas, 39, who also made his submissions through his lawyer Salomon Kanyemba, informed the court that when he arrived in Namibia in December 2010, he was studying business administration and economics. The two, in asking for the court’s leniency both argued that they were young at the time of the commission of the crime.
Thomas has extended his sympathies to Heckmair’s parents, saying he recognises the seriousness of the offence.
“I don’t know if the family will ever get over this,” his statement reads.
In response, Deputy Prosecutor General Antonia Verhoef said the remorse is not genuine.
“Regret is not remorse. It is not genuine. Accused two (Townsend) did not even mention anything in this regard. The State thus calls for a deterrence sentence,” Verhoef said.
She also argued that the murder was premeditated and that the court should assess the reason for the prolonged trial.
Judge Christie Liebenberg postponed the matter to 15 November 2023 for sentencing.
Source: The Namibia Press Agency