BDF arsonist applies for bail pending appeal
Lebogang Mosikare | Thursday February 18, 2016 16:15
The convict, Bonno Ikanyeng, 33, was sentenced to eight years for the offence.
A soured love relationship led to Ikanyeng burning down property worth more than P4,5 million belonging to the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) and soldiers who lived in the barracks.
On Tuesday, Ikanyeng’s lawyer Kabelo Gaonyadiwe applied for bail pending appeal before Principal Magistrate Dumisani Basupi, who initially passed judgment.
Gaonyadiwe told Basupi that they filed their bail pending appeal papers on January 28 but the prosecution represented by Mompoloki Gaboiphiwe from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) said that they would verbally reply to the defence’s application.
“Our main emphasis is the sentence that was meted out to the applicant. Ordinarily we would have waited for the record of proceedings from this court before making our appeal at the high court. The applicant was sentenced to eight years in jail, which she is currently serving at Mahalapye.”
“The BDF has applied to be compensated P4,5 million,” said Gaonyadiwe, adding that he felt that the court was harsh to sentence the accused to eight years in jail and expect her to compensate them, which is impossible because she would lose her job if her appeal is not successful. Gaonyadiwe said they are of the view that they have good prospects of success on appeal and pray with the court to be lenient to the applicant.
Asked by Basupi if the issues he raised should not be brought before the high court to make a determination, Gaonyadiwe said: “There is a likelihood that she may be successful on appeal at the high court…However, we are of the view we don’t know how long it will take for the record of proceedings to be made available to the high court. Order 60 of high court rules states that the record should be ready after 30 days but 30 days is fast approaching and the record may not be ready by the time the appeal is launched. During the time that the appeal is launched she may have served a substantial part of her sentence”.
Countering the defence attorney, Gaboiphiwe said the court should consider if the case has any prospects of success and if the applicant would have served a substantial portion of her sentence before she institutes appeal proceedings at the high court.
Said Gaboiphiwe: “In this case, the applicant has been sentenced to eight years which I admit is fairly long. If the appeal is heard, the applicant would not have served a third of her sentence or half of it. As for her prospects of success, we submit that she has no prospects of success. The state has led sufficient evidence against her and her evidence was not strong”.
In addition, Gaboiphiwe said the psychiatric report clearly stated that the applicant could comprehend what she was doing at the time of commission of offence and she was not insane but was just suffering from a moderate form of depression.
“We are also of the view that the court properly directed itself by sentencing her to eight years in jail.”
However, Gaonyadiwe said there was a possibility that the applicant would have served half of her sentence if she appeals at the high court when taking into consideration that prison authorities would reduce a third of her sentence which may prejudice her if her appeal is not successful.
Ruling on the matter will be delivered on February 26. Meanwhile, a 32-year-old maid from Mbalambi village pleaded guilty to concealing birth, burning her baby, then burying the body in a shallow grave in the thickets at Monarch Phase 5 on April 12, 2014.
The accused, Mandikhona Tabakani, pleaded guilty to the offence after charges were read to her. Prosecutor Gaboiphiwe said that she did not anticipate the plea of guilty. She applied for the matter to be postponed to allow facts of the matter to be prepared.
Neighbours discovered the corpse of the child after dogs dug the decayed corpse and started consuming it.
Acting on a tip-off, police arrested the accused and discovered that she was the one who had recently given birth but could not account to the whereabouts of her newly born baby.