DPP attorney Modisa Kebonyemodisa said the state decided to drop the murder charges in line with Section 278 (3) of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act. It has been heard that Gaseitsiwe had a fight with his then girlfriend at a party, on October 8, 2010 in Palapye. The woman reportedly set herself alight after the incident and she sustained severe injuries that landed her in hospital. She passed away two weeks later.
Upon Justice Zibani Makhwade's perusal into the withdrawal of the murder charge, Kebonyemodisa said that as a representative of the DPP, he was authorised to drop charges with authority and on behalf of the director. He also told court that although the state had concluded to drop the charges, it was prepared to proceed with the common assault charge, asserting that the latter charge held more substance. The accused's attorney Kakanyo Phefa Mokwena of KP Mokwena and Partners agreed that the common assault charge was more fitting, as the evidence presented did not deserve a murder charge. Gaseitsewe was immediately arraigned on a charge of common assault which he pleaded guilty to.
