Trio admits guilt in manslaughter, robbery case
Innocent Selatlhwa | Tuesday September 26, 2023 06:00
Their bail was revoked last Friday following their admission of guilt, as the initial charge of murder was reduced.
The case is currently before Justice Modiri Letsididi at the Lobatse High Court. According to court proceedings, on the evening of December 1, 2016, Oboetswe Gaolefe, a shop assistant at Frokane General Dealer in Serinane, Kweneng, ended her workday at 8pm, leaving security guard, Tlholego Makuke, to man the shop throughout the night. Approximately an hour later, the trio, allegedly hatching their plan while at a bar in Molepolole, arrived in Serinane and discovered Makuke asleep near a fireplace.
They swiftly attacked him, one of them silencing him by covering his mouth with their hands, while the others proceeded to strangle him relentlessly. They also assaulted him with blows to his head and face, all while he struggled for breath, with blood dripping from his nostrils. Reportedly, while Makuke remained unconscious, they relocated him to a nearby yard, securing him with his shoelaces.
One of the assailants stayed behind to guard him and took his Mint cellphone, worth P200, while the other two broke into the store. They used a crowbar to force open the store's padlock and proceeded to loot it, making off with a Lenovo Central Processing Unit (CPU) valued at P2,800 and cash amounting to P3,127.05 from a cash box. After seizing the cash and discarding the cashbox, they sold the CPU and cellphone to one Thapelo Tsietso in Molepolole. The following morning, the deceased Makuke was discovered by Kgosipula Dikgatlhong just outside his yard. A post-mortem examination conducted eight days later revealed that the cause of death was neck compression.
During their investigation, the police collaborated with mobile phone network providers. Orange Botswana reported that Tsietso's SIM card had been inserted into the stolen phone. On January 31, 2017, the police arrested Tsietso, where they found the CPU. Tsietso then fessed up that Lesego had taken the SIM card from him to use the stolen phone.
On February 2, Ramolala was apprehended and provided a confession statement. He then led the police to Molefe, who was also taken into custody. Lesego was arrested on February 4, 2017, leading the police to his house, where he revealed the remnants of the burnt phone. Upon ensuring that the guilty pleas were clear and unequivocal, Justice Letsididi convicted the trio whose prior convictions were disclosed during the court proceedings. Ramolala had previously received two strokes from Molepolole Customary Court for common assault in April 2004.
In June 2007, Molefe was convicted of housebreaking and theft from a dwelling house by the customary court in Molepolole, earning him four years' imprisonment for each count. In July 1997, Lesego was convicted of bar-breaking and theft, as well as, common assault and received a one-year suspended prison sentence. Consequently, the trio's bail was revoked and is set to present mitigating circumstances before sentencing later this year (November 23).