Cops gone rogue as 15 charged with stock theft
Pini Bothoko | Wednesday May 28, 2025 09:47
The disclosure was made by Police Commissioner, Dinah Marathe, when she appeared before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Friday.
She was responding to a question from Member of Parliament (MP) for Thamaga-Kumakwane, Pelaelo Motaosane.
The legislator had wanted to know if the Commissioner was aware that some of her officers have turned against the badge and to provide the number of those currently being prosecuted for stock theft.
This revelation comes as the country grapples with persistent problem of stock theft that has left farmers ruing the day they went into pastoral farming. Motaosane had also wanted to know what the police head was doing to address the matter with butchery owners and street vendors who have since been identified to thrive on stock theft.
“Yes, I have 15 police officers involved in stock theft as perpetrators and have appeared before court. Out of this total number, we have nine police officers from Mochudi and they are currently on interdiction,” Marathe told the sitting.
“As for butchery owners and street vendors, we have encouraged them to establish their own forums in which they can partner to help us fight stock theft because not all of them buy stolen stock,” she added.
Equally so, Marathe said they have been pleading with butcheries to desist from buying livestock that cannot be traced. It was evident that a majority of the merchants were complicit in stock theft relying on stolen livestock for supplies, she noted.
She further told the PAC the country faces a certain crisis that also affects police officers as they too are a reflection of the society they serve.
“When there is high corruption in the country, we also see those traces even within the service and that is why we make sure that all those who are involved in any criminal offence face the law.
“We, therefore, plead with members of the public to alert us about any criminal activities involving our police officers so that we can attend to such cases on time before they tarnish the police’s integrity,” the Commissioner said.
Moreover, Motaosane further asked the police Commissioner if she was aware that there were allegations that some police officers are involved in illegal sand mining owning trucks used in that offence, especially in the outskirts of Gaborone.
“Metsimotlhabe River, because of its proximity to Gaborone, is more vulnerable. There are allegations that some police officers, who own trucks that are used to load that sand, sweep such cases under the carpet,” he said.
In her response, Marathe said if there are such officers, members of the public should notify authorities so that the illegal sand mining can be put to an end before the situation gets out of hand.