Mother implicates son in violent robbery
Lebogang Baingapi | Tuesday February 2, 2016 16:17
Ramaiyane’s son, Arnold Rapholo, and his co-accused, Boikobo Tumisang and Mothusi Ghannie are accused of assaulting Jack Moilwa with fists, kicks and an axe before stealing a generator and water pipes at Lefhoko lands on February 19, 2015.
Testifying in the case, prosecutor Sub-Inspector Edwin Supang had a tough time directing Ramaiyane to relate events that led to her son being in possession of the stolen generator and other items.
After telling court that she did not know the accused persons except her son, Ramaiyane indicated that on the date in question, Rapholo borrowed a donkey cart to from her to visit his aunt. She said she was later confronted by police officers who had the donkey cart laden with items and saying it had been used in a robbery case. She said she also followed a police officer who was chasing Ghannie and witnessed his arrest in her field.
“As for my son, he told me he never assaulted the complainant. He was only helping the other accused persons to load the items and he ran when he saw them run away,” she claimed.Ramaiyane further told court that the axe which was presented before court and alleged to have been used during the robbery, was not the one she saw when the police loaded items from her cart into a police vehicle.
“This is not the one. The one I know is a tomahawk axe, which is small in size. Even the bag I saw was a black rucksack and not the brown one here in court,” she said, lifting the axe in court. Frequently, the prosecutor stepped in to remind Ramaiyane to be truthful and stop being defensive.
During cross examination Ramaiyane said the investigating officer had written her statement and read it to her in English before telling her to quickly sign it.
“I never wrote a statement. The investigating officer allowed me to go and take a bath and he wrote it and read it in English and asked me to sign when I returned. I don’t know how to read and write so I don’t know what’s in there,” she told court.
She further claimed that she did not remember the year the offence occurred and the police are the ones who completed the statement form date.
Ramaiyane also asked that the relevant police officers be called to testify, saying the prosecutor was giving her a “tough time” because he was not there when the statement was taken.
During a previous appearance, the victim, Moilwa attempted to withdraw the case, saying he had wasted the court’s time. However, he was reminded that he was only a witness and could not order the court around.
Moilwa testified that Boikobo and Ghannie approached him claiming to be police officers before they assaulted him and tied his hands and blindfolded him. The pair then made off with a generator, water pipes, and a bag of spanners. The case continues.