‘Passion killing’ trial begins 11 years later
Innocent Selatlhwa | Monday June 26, 2023 06:00
First to take the witness stand was Tsogwane’s grandmother Kegomoditswe Semathane who stayed with her. Asked what he knew about the relationship between the two, the old woman said that she knew the two were lovers and that Basupi had even paid for her granddaughter to further her education. She however, was quick to point out that Basupi was abusive of her grandchild. “He used to abuse her very badly that he would even assault her inside my home in my presence. It happened so many times that I lost count. We would call the police to intervene in most cases,” she said. Semathane said the situation was so bad that she then told Basupi to never come to her place. She said even after that, Tsogwane would tell her she was still seeing Basupi as she would still tell her she was going to his place. She said the two would then break up and a reconciler meeting organised by Basupi’s parents would not bear fruit as Tsogwane said she was done with Basupi who had left her and now wanted her back. The words were reiterated by another witness Francis Semathane who is Tsogwane’s uncle.
The old woman said she last saw her granddaughter alive on March 10, 2012 when she told her she was going to the salon to do her hair. Tsogwane’s friend Francinah Moyo said she was there when the relationship began in 2008. “It started off as a beautiful relationship especially in the first year. However, things went south as they proceeded. Basupi would assault Tsogwane even for non-issues until they broke up at the beginning of 2012,” she said. She said in one instance, Basupi attempted to drag Tsogwane out of a club to assault her accusing her of cheating with a certain guy called Mendy. She said at the time, Mendy was still pursuing Tsogwane. Moyo said after the break-up, Basupi pleaded with her to talk to Tsogwane as he could not stand being without her. She said she tried but would not succeed as Tsogwane said she was fed up with the abuse. On cross-examination, Basupi’s attorney Phillip Leitshamo quizzed why Moyo would want to convince Tsogwane to be with an abusive man and why they never reported the matter to the police. She said Basupi had told her that if they do not get back together, he would commit ‘passion killing’ and kill himself. She said Tsogwane never wanted to report because she did not want Basupi to lose his job. Another friend, Kedibone Matlhape who worked in a salon, then spoke highly of the love between the two despite the assaults stating that Basupi even paid for her further studies and showered her with presents.
She said she did not even believe it when Tsogwane told her they had broken up. “The night before I heard of her passing, she came to do her hair and while we were there, she told me Basupi would come pick her up and he indeed came and they left together. In the wee hours of the morning we learnt she never got back home and that she was killed,” she said. Another witness who took the stand was Gaone Mendy who said he was in a relationship with Tsogwane when she passed away. “We met in November 2011 and I proposed a romantic relationship and she turned me down stating that she was in a relationship. I would not give up since she said there were challenges in the relationship and we eventually became a couple by 30th December 2011 after she said she had broken up with her lover,” he said. Mendy said before they agreed on being lovers, Basupi once called him and told him to stay away from his woman. Mendy said he then invited Basupi to his house to talk. He said when Basupi came, he was met by THE mother of his children as he (Mendy) was bathing. He said Basupi left a message that he should stay away from Tsogwane. He said upon telling Tsogwane about the incident, she told him they had broken up with Basupi and that he should not worry. Contrary to what Moyo said, Mendy said she was already dating Tsogwane when Basupi attacked her at a night club.
He said while Tsogwane ran to the police station, Basupi warned Moyo that if ever he killed Tsogwane, she would answer any question. “We then went to follow them to the police station and when I got there, I learnt the two were regulars at the police station. I left them with the police and the following day when we spoke, she said she had not opened a case but asked them to reprimand Basupi,” he said. All along, Mendy said their relationship would progress well until March 10, 2012 when Tsogwane would not show up for their scheduled meeting. “She told me she was going to do her hair at a salon and we agreed to meet at Pitse E Sule Bar at 6pm. I went there and an hour later she had not arrived. I tried calling and sending texts but she never responded. I would then go home to sleep at around 8pm hoping she would come to my house if she did not find me at the bar,” he said. Mendy said he would get calls on the wee hours of the following day that his new found love was no more. Another witness who took the stand was Tsholofelo Kebonang, a lecturer at the Palapye Technical College who was Basupi’s friend and colleague in Ramotswa. He told of days leading to the murder. Like other witnesses, he attested of the love between the two. He, however, denied knowing about any assaults, but rather minor arguments. “On the 7th of March, I received an sms from the deceased telling me that Basupi had sent him an sms asking her about policies. We went to his house together with the deceased and some friends. When we got there, he did not immediately open and we broke a window through which we convinced him to open the door and come out. Though it seemed like he had been crying, he eventually laughed out with us,” he said.
Kebonang said on March 9, he went to see Basupi at work, but he was not there. He said when he called to enquire why he was not at work, Basupi said he needed some space. He said he would the following night, on March 10, 2012 at 11pm received a call from Basupi asking him to come to his house. He, however, said he could not do so because his car was low on fuel. “About 30 minutes or so later, he called me once again and said that he had killed Tsogwane and asked me to meet him at the police station. I went there and he only arrived later looking all bruised. We went inside and told the police what he told me. He further stated that he tried committing suicide by hanging but he failed, he tried to drink acid, also failed to end his life and then he tried using a car but still failed to claim his life,” he said. Kebonang said he would then accompany the police to Basupi’s house where they found Tsogwane’s lifeless body in a pool of blood inside the house. On cross examination, Leitshamo quizzed Kebonang about Basupi’s mental state during their interaction. Trial continues.