Sentences due for violent gang robbers
Tumelo Mouwane | Wednesday September 16, 2015 16:29
Kabo Loratile (20), Phenyo Rakebaang (19) and Thabo Keabetswe (19) were found guilty of robbing Thabiso Lekhane of P800, a cooler bag worth P350 and a black ZTE phone valued at P350 on March 14, 2015.
Submitting their mitigation before court, the three convicts said they had families to take care of and pleaded for reduced sentences.
Loratile said his mother relied on him for her medication.
“I left my mother at home and she is very sick. She can’t take her medication effectively in my absence. I also have three younger sisters who are schooling and I take care of our livestock at home,” he said.
For his part, Rakebaang said he had left his ‘helpless’ brother at home. “I left my disabled brother at home and he relies on me for assistance. He is helpless without me. I have a younger sister who is schooling and I am responsible for taking care of the goats at home,” he said. Keabetswe said he was the family ‘breadwinner’ and his relatives would suffer if he received a long sentence. “I am the only one working at home and I am the one who has been buying the family all their necessities. I have also been taking care of livestock,” he said. The trio will be back in court on September 18 for sentencing. Meanwhile, a suspected stock thief, Gaboratanelwe Batsile, tasted freedom in an unrelated case, when Magistrate Thedi Tshepo ruled in his favour, against the state’s application for remand in custody.
Batsile was among five suspects before court on a single charge of stock theft, in which they are accused of stealing two beasts worth P10,000 in July at Maisane cattle post.
Another suspect in the matter is still on the run.
The prosecutor, Sub Inspector Mishingo Kedikanetswe, said Batsile was a wanted person in Kanye.
“We plead for the remand of the third accused person in custody as he is wanted at Kanye magistrates court,” he said.
“Don’t you think Kanye magistrates are the rightful people to issue such,” Magistrate Tshepo asked the prosecutor.
“I can only issue a warrant of arrest for the fourth accused person since he is on the run. I will not be able to issue a remand on the third accused person.” Batsile will appear in court again on October 19.