Kgosi granted seized guns
Mpho Mokwape | Monday June 13, 2022 06:00
“The arms are to be released to the applicant within three days from the date of this order. The evidence presented to the court clearly showed they were lawfully registered in his name. Such registration in my view showed evidence of ownership,” Justice Tafa said.
The judge explained that in the absence of evidence to the contrary, the court could not second-guess the ex-spy chief because the evidence was that the listed firearms were indeed collected from his custody.
He said Kgosi had the requisite licences to possess the firearms and that the issue was a clear case of lawful possession and/or ownership.
“There is no evidence on the record that the dispossession was justified. It is the duty of the court to ensure that citizens are not dispossessed of what appears, on the face of it, to be their property by anybody including agents of the State. No legal basis or reasonable ground for the continued keeping of the firearms has been presented by the state," he asserted.
Justice further pointed out that there was no evidence on record that there are investigations against the applicant in connection with the firearms except for unverified social and print media reports. He said the court could not, in the absence of sworn evidence in the form of an affidavit, take into account such reports. However, Tafa acknowledged that the state did file what purported to be an application for a stay of execution of the proceedings saying the application in his view was premature as the judgment was still to be delivered.
Meanwhile, before the judgment, the state had tried stopping the proceedings citing a pending criminal case related to the same guns. The state reportedly filed an application seeking a stay of proceedings. However, the application did not see the light of day as it was established that it was not properly before the court because it did not follow court rules.
According to the case, Kgosi’s guns were seized on February 15, 2019, following a raid at his residence in Phakalane. He said on that fateful day he had a rude awakening when officers from the Botswana Police Service and the DIS served him with a warrant of entry, then searched and seized his property without explaining to him why, and what charges he was facing. Kgosi explained that during the raid, the officers took his firearms and ammunition in different models that he legally owned.
In his filed papers before court, Kgosi said there has been a pattern of harassment against him, which explained the seizure of his firearms and ammunition.
“The state has not at any point attempted to provide the reasonable basis for holding onto my property, they have failed to indicate what offence they are investigating or why it is necessary to hold onto the property for the purposes of any investigation if any,” he said. Diba Diba represented Kgosi while Charles Gulubane represented the state. The guns to be returned are as follows:
*300 rifle serial numbers 710-9550 *12 gauge double barrel shotgun serial number 0505544 *9mm Jericho pistol with 2 magazines 14.A *30/06-rifle serial number C700521Bruno *308-rifle number 3433854 *O/U shotgun 12g serial number 09137 NP153 *9mm pistol serial number 857992 *Combination 12/76 and 3006 serial number 4/8666 4 4R 04838 *50mm pistol serial number 41201234 *12 gauge shotgun serial number 63529 PR 152