Man loses P56,000 after DIS interrogation

MONKAGEDI GAOTLHOBOGWE
Staff Writer | Friday April 16, 2010 00:00

 

 Elias Ramogerika of Broadhurst in Gaborone was among a team of five men who made P56,000 at an auction at BBS Mall earlier that day. The money was entrusted to Ramogerika by the chief auctioneer, Senki Sesinyi, to take home at the end of the auction after 3pm, while the rest of the team travelled to Mafikeng in South Africa.

Ramogerika says he then decided to go to the University of Botswana's Faculty of Engineering and Technology where he is a student to complete some assignments. He was driving home from school in a metallic blue BMW sedan, belonging to his boss Sesenyi, when the DIS agents allegedly pounced on him at approximately 5pm.

Ramogerika says he had just bought some food at the Choppies store in Maruapula when an Isuzu 4x4 double cab vehicle registered B 212 400 drove at him. 'I was at the Maruapula traffic lights waiting for my turn when an Isuzu came at me at high speed,' he says.

'I drove off the road to avoid it, but it kept coming at me. Four men suddenly jumped out it and came rushing at me. Without saying who they were, they handcuffed me and threw me onto the takeaway I had just bought. One of the men drove my car and took me to DIS headquarters near State House.'

Upon arrival, his car was searched and things removed from it before he was taken upstairs where he was photographed from several angles. The interrogation then started. 'They asked me where I got the money to buy such an expensive car,' Ramogerika says. 'Man, those handcuffs were hurting.'

His interrogators took turns. 'Sometimes they would send me out, apparently when they wanted to discuss something they did not want me to hear,' he says. 'They would then take me back into the office.'

 His cellphone was scrutinized and all the phone numbers on it copied onto another phone. 'They told me that they suspected that I was stealing cars, apparently because some of my contacts had names of cars.

'I explained that we sell all types of goods and that the numbers were for certain customers who wanted certain makes of cars. They then accused me of selling stolen goods and asked if we had a licence for auctioning, which we do and I told them so.'

Ramogerika says he was not tortured but it was not until around 9pm that he was set free. 'They said they felt pity for me 'because you are so light-skinned, otherwise we would have you spend the night here. You may go now.''

It was then that he made his first call since being 'ambushed' at around 5pm. His elder brother Kagiso and Sesinyi came to fetch him from the Main Mall. It was then that Sesinyi, whose property the P56,000 was, realised that the money was missing.

'We immediately drove back to the DIS premises,' Ramogerika says. 'Twice actually that night, but they had locked their gates. Sesinyi proceeded to report the matter at Central Police Station.'