Maria David
THE police in the Oshana Region have arrested a 44-year-old woman who allegedly assaulted her seven-year-old son with a belt at Onashiku shaLaban village in the Oshakati district.
The Namibian Police Force’s Oshana Crime Investigation Coordinator, Deputy Commissioner Frederick Ndjadila, said the incident occurred around 07:00 on Thursday.
According to Ndjadila, the victim was allegedly left at home with other minors while the mother and her boyfriend went drinking at a local cuca shop.
Ndjadila indicated that the minors decided to go to a neighbour’s house, where they stayed until late and eventually slept. The parents only returned at about 23:00 but did not go to collect the children; instead, they went to sleep.
“On Thursday morning, when the older minor (victim) came to dress for school, he found his mother waiting for him outside their house. She then took a belt and assaulted her son several times all over his body, and in the process, the belt hit the child on the left eye, causing a swollen eye,” he said.
He added that due to the severity of the injury and the mother’s lack of cooperation, the matter was reported to the Namibian Police by the relevant school management, and action was taken.
Ndjadila indicated that the victim’s mother was arrested, and the minor was taken to Oshakati State Hospital for medical attention.
Furthermore, Ndjadila stated that all three children were removed from the house and placed in the care of the suspect’s maternal grandmother with the support of the GBVVP social worker.
