Double culpable homicide accused found guilty

The driver, Jean Cilliers (23), involved in a gruesome collision that claimed the lives of two Otjiwarongo residents at the corner of 5th Road and Union Street in Walvis Bay on 28 June 2014 was found guilty on two counts of culpable homicide.

Estelle Louw and Joseph Gretorius Christiaan were killed instantly when the Hyundai Getz sedan (N4639OT) they were travelling in was struck by a Land Cruiser (N149-006W) whose driver allegedly ignored a stop sign and was driving at a high speed. The impact of the collision was so great, it could be heard within a 800m radius. Two other passengers in the sedan sustained injuries and had to be extricated from the wreckage with hydraulic equipment, one of the two were transferred to Windhoek for treatment. The four occupants had attended a wedding in Walvis Bay and were on their way back to Otjiwarongo. Cilliers was arrested at the scene and was initially charged with culpable homicide, and drunk and reckless driving and was given bail of N$9 000. He was recently found guilty on the charges of culpable homicide by Magistrate John Liwoyo Sindano, to which he received a fine of N$20 000 or a 30 months imprisonment sentence.
Accidents remain unabated as another life was claimed in a horrific crash involving a truck and Mahindra pick-up truck on the B2 route between Swakopmund and Arandis yesterday afternoon.
This accident follows the, also-, fatal collision between two vehicles in the Wilhelmstal vicinity on Friday evening which killed three people in the inferno as both vehicles burst into flames.
In other news, a white Golf 7 found itself in deep water when the driver managed to drive over the pavement and into the Lagoon. The incident occurred in the early morning hours of Sunday, the actual cause of the accident and the series of events preceding it remains unclear.