BDF arsonist found guilty
Lebogang Mosikare | Tuesday January 19, 2016 14:53
The accused, Bonno Ikanyeng (33), was convicted for burning the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) barracks at Area S on January 5, 2013. Property worth more than P4.5 million, being the property of government and soldiers who lived in the barracks, was burnt in the process.
Passing judgement, Principal Magistrate Dumisani Basupi said Dr Paul Sidandi, a senior consultant psychiatric at Jubilee Hospital produced a report that showed the mental state of the accused at the time.
“Dr Sidandi was of the opinion that the accused was suffering from depression in a mild to moderate form before delivery but her situation was worsened by the social stressors in particular the strained relationship with her husband, David Ikanyeng. The current depression was triggered by the birth of the baby resulting in an illness whose severity was moderate,” said Basupi.
The accused’s previous predisposition to jealousy was exacerbated by the perceived emotional neglect by her husband whose job as a training instructor involved close contact with female friends. She briefly became paranoid after the incident, added Basupi.
The magistrate said Sidandi recommended that Bonno’s depression did not amount to insanity.
Insanity, Basupi said, is defined as not knowing what one was doing and if one knew what he/she was doing then they did not know that was wrong.
“At the closure of the prosecution case and after I ruled that she had a case to answer, she elected to give unsworn evidence…She said she continuously called her husband but he did not answer…She said she kept on calling her husband’s phone but it went off. She then decided to come to Francistown from Tutume and found her husband not present at the barracks,” said Basupi.
“In my analysis of the entire evidence, I did not find any ground of justification for the burning of the barracks,” he sad adding that the main contention between the defence and the prosecution is whether she intentionally burnt the barracks or not.
Added Basupi: “Counsel Kabelo Gaonyadiwe for the accused argued that the evidence of Dr Sidandi is that the accused suffered from a number of symptoms and one of them is ‘fleeting hallucinations.’’ Gaonyadiwe had argued that there was no evidence whatsoever to show that the accused intentionally set fire to the property alleged to have been damaged.
“In general, I understand Gaonyadiwe to mean that the element of intention was lacking because the accused had some mental illness or symptoms thereof…The evidence the defence has admitted is that the accused while in David Ikanyeng’s house, started destroying items.
The defence has admitted the fire investigation report which says that Ikanyeng went to her husband’s house…She later warned David’s cousin who had given her the keys to the apartment that she was going to destroy David’s belongings. The cousin later received a call which informed him that the entire block had been destroyed by fire, which was first discovered in Ikanyeng’s room,” said Basupi.
Basupi added that all evidence point to the accused as being the one who started the fire or alternatively, the fire started in the room that the accused was in.
“As far as the accused’s evidence is concerned, her evidence failed to meet the test of being a credible and competent witness…I find that the accused should have foreseen that damaging items in her husband’s room would result in the fire. The form if intention named dolus enventualis has been established against the accused. In light of the above, I find that the state has proven its case against the accused beyond reasonable doubt. She is now convicted of arson,” said Basupi.
In mitigation, Gaonyadiwe pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy and sentence the accused to a non-custodial sentence.
“For the past 33 years, the accused had no brushes with the law. She has three children some of whom are going to school and she is taking care of them.
She is also taking care of her mother who is suffering from cancer and her mentally disturbed brother. The accused should be given a second chance because she will lose her job if she is imprisoned,” said Gaonyadiwe.
Mompoloki Gaboiphiwe from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) represented the state in the matter.
Sentence will be passed on January 21.