The officers are Dzikamani Mothobi, Goitshosamang Sechele, Ronny Matako and Boitshoko Maifala. Last week, Thursday, the four officers exchanged their civilian clothes for prison uniform after Judge David Newman found them guilty of murder and related offences. Sechele, Matako and Maifala, convicted of murder escaped the hangman by a whisker after Newman found that there are extenuating circumstances that reduced their moral blameworthiness when committing the crime. They are however likely to face lengthy prison sentences that will also be determined by mitigatory factors and their criminal records. As for Mothobi, even though he was acquitted of murder, he was found guilty of the offence of being an accessory after the fact to murder. Newman said Mothobi actively participated in the measures taken to cover up the transgressions of his colleagues, following the shooting of Kalafatis.
Curtains are falling on the highly publicised case, which made its high court debut on October 29 last year when 21 witnesses gave testimony during trial. At the commencement of trial, the state alleged that on the evening of Wednesday 13 May 2009, Kalafatis was shot and killed while sitting in the rear of a two door Opel Corsa motor vehicle. The particulars of the offence, set out in the indictment, alleged that the four convicts, acting together and in concert murdered Kalafatis.
