Drunk driver convicted of causing death

PATRICIA MAGANU
Staff Writer | Friday February 26, 2010 00:00

Kebabonye Kgotla pleaded guilty to the charges but the court deferred sentencing.The facts of the matter are that on October 11 last year, the accused drove a vehicle along the Matsiloje-Francistown road going towards Matsiloje while drunk.

'You lost control of the vehicle as you were speeding and the vehicle overturned,' the charges state. 'The incident was reported to Francistown police and you and three other people were taken to Nyangabgwe Hospital.'

They further read that one of the passengers of the vehicle, Kemmonye Alec, later died at the hospital.

The post-mortem revealed that she died from shock as she was injured on the head and the chest.

The accused agreed with all the facts that were read to him.

In mitigation, the accused said he had a family to take care of. 'I have two children that I am taking care of and I am also responsible for my ailing grandmother,' he stated. 

In another matter, a 26 year-old supervisor at Security Systems, Jakoba Mpotsang, has pleaded guilty to driving a public transport vehicle without the proper licence but pleaded not guilty to causing the death of a pedestrian by driving dangerously on the A1 road near Nzano Mall in Francistown.

The charge sheet reads that on October 20 last year, the accused was driving dangerously on the said road when he caused the death of a pedestrian, Buti Mothabi.

The accused will appear in court for mention on April 13.