Katutura community in shock as three unexplained deaths remain unsolved - nbc

The streets and riverbeds of Windhoek's Katutura have become silent witnesses to unexplained deaths that continue to haunt the community.

In the space of a few months, three people, two women and a young man, were found dead in separate but nearby areas. Their names, Juanita Karolus, Pius Kalipa, and Delysia ||Garoes, now echo in grief and frustration.

The families of the victims share a painful bond: the absence of answers.

The most recent case is that of 33-year-old Juanita Karolus, a resident of Keetmanshoop, whose body was found behind People's Primary School in Katutura. According to family spokesperson Welhelm Stoffels, Karolus arrived in Windhoek from Keetmanshoop on Wednesday of last week. Stoffels informed NBC News that police confirmed her identity through fingerprints that matched at the Ministry of Home Affairs.

At the scene, an official informed NBC News that Karolus appeared to have experienced sexual abuse. She was found without underwear, her shoes missing, and her black pants torn, with the belt removed.

Karolus, a gospel singer, leaves behind a 13-year-old child.

Just a month before Karolus's death, residents of Damara 15 in Katutura woke up to a similar scene. The body of Delysia ||Garoes was found in a riverbed; this discovery, like that of Juanita, was just a stone's throw away from nearby houses.

For residents, the discovery was unsettling. Viola |Hochobes, a resident of Damara 7, shared her shock at the discovery of another body in the area she calls home.

"I believe this lady was not killed here; she was dumped here. People heard three screams in the back street close to the daycare centre. We live in fear here; we are no longer safe. Many murders have occurred in this country, and no arrests have been made," narrated |Hochobes.

Another resident of Damara 7, Juliala Eises, said the community fears for their safety and that of their loved ones. "We have small children; we are afraid to move around; we are afraid to wake up early and to look for a taxi. Who could do such an ugly thing? I did not hear anything that night. All the known criminals from this area are arrested and in prison, so who could have done this?" she asked.

Juanita's discovery marks two women, both found in open spaces near homes, both in conditions suggesting violence, and both cases with no visible progress.

Regarding ||Garoes, police said that they found no traces of sexual abuse or any form of violence.

Earlier this year, the still-breathing body of 19-year-old Pius Kalipa was found behind the SWAPO Party headquarters, also near a riverbed. He had been stabbed in the chest.

CCTV footage later confirmed that he had been attempting to hail a taxi after collecting money from his mother's tuckshop that night. But like the others, his death remains unsolved.

Behind each story lies a family and a life cut short, like Juanita Karolus, a mother who came to the city for a family visit; Pius Kalipa, a young man whose last words pointed to his attackers; and Delysia ||Garoes, the woman from Damara 15, whose family is still in the dark about who her attackers were.

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