Blind Teacher Charged With Rape, Defilement
Lebogang Mosikare | Monday January 23, 2017 17:23
The accused, Mpho Keikabile, 32, of Monarch, is facing three counts of rape that he allegedly committed between November 15, 2015 and February 21, 2016 at Lephoi Centre in Monarch. The state also alleges that Keikabile committed two counts of indecent assault that he committed during a date unknown to the prosecution in February 2016 at Lephoi.
He allegedly committed the offences by caressing the private parts of his victims.
Lastly, the state also alleges that Keikabile also defiled one of his students between 2015 and March 2016 at Lephoi.
The prosecution says that some of the alleged victims in the matters are blind while some are virtually blind and are all Keikabile’s students.
The prosecutor in the matters, Mompoloki Gaboiphiwe, from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) applied for charges to be read to the accused and his pleas taken. Gaboiphiwe further said that investigations in the matters are complete and the state will call about 30 witnesses to testify against Keikabile.
She added: “We therefore apply for trial dates to be set in the matters. We do not object that the accused should be granted bail on conditions that would be set by the court.” However, the setting of trial dates was postponed because the accused said that he would engage an attorney to represent. When granting the accused bail, Principal Magistrate, Dumisani Basupi said that he was prompted to deviate from the normal procedure of granting accused persons bail because the current cases involve a person who is partially blind.
Said Basupi: “The current cases involve a person who is partially blind. I therefore trust that he cannot abscond to stand trial. The accused shall only come to court as and when required to do so. He shall appear in court on February 10 with his attorney so that trial dates in his matters can be set”. Meanwhile, the police recently charged a 14-year-old secondary school student with one count of murder.
The state alleges that the minor together with Batisane Nthabaye, 35, Kesegofetse Bantu, 24, Mmasepatela Nthebolang, 30, and Goitsemodimo Peter, 23, murdered Thomson Bolekantswe at Makobandundu lands near Shashemooke on November 1, 2014.
The case prosecutor Nancy Obonye-Ebineng told Magistrate Ishmael Molobe that the juvenile was given permission not to attend court because he was at school while Peter was not before court for reasons better known to himself.
Obonye-Ebineng therefore said she was left with no option but to apply for a warrant of arrest to be issued against Peter for blatantly disobeying one of his bail conditions of attending court as and when required to do so.
Molobe acceded to the state application and issued a warrant of arrest against Peter. The accused are due in court on February 27 for status hearing.