Motshelo brawl earns man the whip

Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Tuesday May 20, 2014 13:33

 

Urban Customary Court deputy president, Patricia Radipati, sentenced Tumelo Moseki to a whipping after finding him guilty of assaulting Leah Senatla and her daughter Maureen.

The court heard that on May 16, Moseki went to the Senatla residence in the evening and engaged in an argument with Maureen about motshelo funds.

The Senatlas told the court that when they later heard Moseki hurling insults at them from outside the house, the mother asked him to return to the yard. Leah said as an elder, she believed she could help Moseki understand the motshelo rules but she was surprised when the young man continued with his insults.

Leah testified that as she attempted to reason with Moseki, he started punching and slapping her daughter. “That was when Maureen’s sister and I intervened. We tried to stop the two from fighting but Moseki was furious and started assaulting us. I went to the police station for help,” Leah told the court. Medical reports for the two women were brought to court as evidence.

In his defence, Moseki told the court that after he thought the issue was resolved, he heard Leah and her two daughters insulting him.

He said that he pleaded with them to stop but the family continued provoking him with insults until he pounced on Maureen, as he was too respectful to tackle her mother.

Moseki denied assaulting Leah but said all three women fought him. He told the court that after the incident, he went to seek help at Urban Police Station but found that the complainant and her children had already reported him for assault.

In mitigation, Moseki asked the court to be lenient, vowing never to repeat the offence. He said his newborn baby and girlfriend would suffer if he is given a custodial sentence.

Radipati advised Moseki to always report people who insult or wrong him to the authorities, instead of taking the law into his own hands.