Suspended DIS top agents’ harrowing details of arrest, detention
Mpho Mokwape | Monday May 20, 2024 08:20
The agents, who are currently under suspension, indicated that they need protection from court as their liberty has been jeopardised by the constant harassment, surveillance, arrest and detention. Through Kgoadi’s founding affidavit, below are details of their arrest and detention as stated by her.
Details and ackground of their arrests
“On March, 20, 2024, Setlhabi was arrested and detained at Urban Police Station, in Gaborone, by a team comprising members of the Directorate and the Botswana Police Service acting jointly and in concert under the instructions or influence of DIS Director General Peter Magosi. I know that because the team were using the offices of the Directorate at Sebele as their operational base” revealed Kgoadi.
She pointed out that she has never interfaced with them in an office belonging to the Botswana Police Service. That she has only ever interfaced with them in offices belonging to the Directorate.
Kgoadi said she knows so again because the team comprised senior members of the Directorate and that their identities are by law protected and as such she will withhold them for the time being.
“I reserve the right however, to disclose the same in the interests of justice should the respondent challenge me for proof herein. These senior officers played a key role in our arrests and interrogation. My arrest and detention, by the same team, followed the following day on March 21, 2024.
She said they were both released on March 23, 2024 while Setlhabi was released in the morning whilst she was released the same day at night.
She revealed that she was detained at Gaborone West Police Station and that Malikongwa was arrested and detained on March 23, 2024 and then released on March 25, 2004.
“Just as in my case and that of Setlhabi she was never told what crime she was suspected of having committed. To date she does not, and we do not know what it is for which she was arrested and detained,” she said.
Furthermore, Kgoadi said Malikongwa’s mother was on March 25, 2024 in Tutume subjected to questioning by four law enforcement officers stationed in Tutume who were said to be in pursuit of the undisclosed crime and subjected her to a search without a warrant of her person and her vehicle.
She explained that during their detentions they were refused access to family assistance and to lawyers by both members of the Directorate and of the Botswana Police.
As a result their lawyers of record, on the instruction of their families, proceeded to court to obtain orders
She stated that even after obtaining the habeas corpus orders (an order that a person can't be locked up without explanation or trial) the Gaborone West Police Station commander and his juniors were still so scared of Magosi that they would not allow her access to her attorneys insisting to my attorneys of record that only the Directorate could allow for me to be seen by them.
During their detentions, Kgoadi said they were subjected to interrogations by a team headed by a certain Senior Superintendent Mangoyi of the Botswana Police Service.
“We were not told about the provision of the law on which we were being held. We were simply told that we were being investigated for 'leaking'. We were never told what we had leaked, when we had leaked it, and who we had leaked it to. As such we do not know what we were arrested and detained for and what we continue to be harassed for. We asked and were never given information in that regard. To this very date we have not been told what we had leaked, when we had leaked it, and who we had leaked it to,” she said.
The agents denied to have ever leaked anything to anyone whatsoever and challenged the Commissioner of Police and Magosi to prove otherwise.
She stated that apart from the suggestion of leaking which was only suggested to them no accusation was made during their arrest and none has been made since and that their detentions, which were without judicial warrant, they were subjected to searches of residences and vehicles also without warrants.
“During my first interrogation which took place at Sebele DIS offices the team thereof, in particular, Mangoyi, threatened that if I did not answer as they sought they would ‘break’ me. I understood that to mean that they would torture me either physically or mentally until I broke down and succumbed to their demands”
“I must mention on this score that the interrogation did not mention what we had leaked and who we had leaked same to. It did not designate any place or occasion. It simply concerned itself with what we were doing in the office on a particular day and what photocopying we did on the day. This was bizarre because the only photocopying we ever did on or about the time we were asked about was at the specific request of the Director General,” details Kgoadi.
She noted they were advised by Magosi that President Mokgweetsi Masisi needed specific documents for discussion with his Angolan counterpart and they needed to prepare him a bundle for such discussions.
“Unfortunately, on grounds of State secrecy I cannot state here what the documents were about but such were highly secret documents and we understood the urgency thereof. Only two bundles were produced by myself and Setlhabi and other officers of the Directorate. Malikongwa wasn't involved at all. The same were given directly to the Director General's secretary,” revealed the legal director. Suspension Letters
The agents said they were subsequently slapped with suspension letters on April 24, 2024 and that since their release on March 23, 2024, Kgoadi and Setlhabi have been arrested and been detained again.
She said the two of them were arrested on April 26, 2024 on being handed over by their attorneys around 0200hrs and that they were handed over by arrangement with their lawyers after armed Directorate agents under the specific direction of Magosi office threatened to break down the gate of the Setlhabi’s residence and to arrest him.
“They had been surrounding his residence since the late evening of April 25, 2024. Unlike during the first arrest this specific team had no police officers and that an embarrassing spectacle had unfolded at his residence. The team had surrounded his residence and kept shouting orders for him to open the gate.
She said Setlhabi revealed that he feared for his life as the team couldn't disclose what he was sought at that time of the day for and that it was around 2100hrs and that he asked them if he was under arrest and they answered in the negative.
According to the application Setlhabi told them that he was on sick leave and gave them a copy of the same but they still insisted on leaving with him telling him they were under instructions not to come back without him.
“He advises me that the situation became public and a concerned neighbour, fearing for his safety, called for the assistance of the Sir Seretse Khama Airport Police who duly responded. The police quickly left without rendering any assistance when the team introduced themselves as DIS agents and stated that they were under orders. At the time of the spectacle his family had arrived at the scene having been called by him,” revealed the application.
Further, contained in the affidavit is that the standoff is said to have lasted up until 0200hrs when on learning that the officers of the Directorate had encamped outside Setlhabi residence threatening to break down the gate and were also intending to arrest Kgoadi, their attorney Kgosietsile Ngakaagae called the DIS command and offered that both sides appear at his offices which they agreed to. Our attorney handed over to the officers of the Directorate at about 0400hrs at his office.
Kgoadi said he summoned her to his office and the team escorted Setlhabi to Phase 2 where his offices are located and that the Directorate falsely alleged that they had been looking for them without success.
“Through our attorney of record we agreed with the Directorate command that were in attendance that he would bring us to their offices on the 26th of April 2024 at 0900hrs which was done. Upon arrival at the Directorate offices we were immediately subjected to restricted movement and put under escort. We were released later that day at around 2100hrs. We were instructed to present ourselves again on April 27, 2024 at 1400hrs which we did.
They revealed more that they were interrogated from that point at 3 o'clock until the morning of April 28, 2024 and were continually under guard and our movements were restricted.
Also they indicated that they were practically under arrest and that Setlhabi was released around 0330hrs while she was not as lucky as she was taken to Urban Police Station where she was detained in police cells.
“No crimes were stated for our arrest and for my detention we have never been brought before a court of law on any allegations of crime. I was told that I was being detained because I was refusing to hand over some phones belonging to the Directorate or failed to comply with the third respondent's instruction in the letter of suspension. I wish to state at all material times when we were summoned to the offices of the Directorate we had medical certificates indicating our unfitness for duty which were totally disregarded by the Directorate. Such had been served prior through its registry,” said Kgoadi.
She mentioned that on her second detention on the April 28, 2024 she requested to contact her attorney of record or at least a family member to notify them of this development but was refused by officers of the Directorate as well as the section leader at Urban Police Station.
She stated further that she advised the officer of the Directorate that she had left her minor children at home and needed a family member to attend to them and this too was denied and additionally she was denied access to her prescribed medication despite her disclosure that she was on antibiotics and was not permitted to skip the course.
“No crimes were stated for our arrest and we have never been brought before a court of law on any allegations of crime. I must state that as a result my family in particular my brother attended at various police stations looking for me but without success until he was advised by my attorney of record that I was detained at Urban Police Station. Upon arrival he requested to see me but was informed by the officer in charge that he was not allowed to see me or provide any kind of assistance to me. He was turned away. This was a repeat incident,” mentioned the affidavit.
Kgoadi noted that during their first arrests they were all refused access to family assistance and to legal assistance.
That she alone was detained and the reason given to her was that she was refusing to release government property, in particular phones.
“I had been told that the phones were needed in order that they could be subjected to forensic examination to understand my communication. I am not at liberty to say at this moment what the phones were for. Suffice however, to say that the phones were given to me for operational reasons in the course of my employment for use in the work of the organisation by various persons after a need was found to exist and authority was granted by Magosi in person,” she stated.
In conclusion Kgoadi emphasised that after her release she was advised by their attorneys of record that she should now account for the same phones in writing which she have since done.
She said explanations she gave during the oral interrogation were refused and she has been interrogated on the phones before by Mangoyi's team.
“I had not been detained for the answers I gave the first time which were the same answers for which I was detained. The detention was not based on any possibility of interfering with investigations or fleeing. The detention was specifically meant to ‘break’ me down so I give answers that my interrogators wanted to hear. I had been warned of this on my first arrest and interrogation. This is true because I was released later without anything further having been done by way of investigations,” Concluded Kgoadi.