08 Apr 2014

The state has withdrawn charges against Bobo Zebe, who was accused of falsely calling Barclays House and proclaiming that there was a bomb in the building, because of insufficient evidence.

The charge was improper use of public telecommunication system on August 1, 2013 to convey an offensive and menacing message to an employee of Barclays House.

Before authorising withdrawal of the case, Chief Magistrate Linah Oahile-Mokibe of the Village Magistrate Court noted that different prosecutors from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP), some without instructions, had been appearing before court after the initial prosecutor, Mr Modibedi Tladi left for further studies.

Chief Magistrate Oahile-Mokibe advised Zebe to approach director general of Directorate of Intelligence Services for the return of his asserts which its agents took from him during the time of his arrest.

Zebe had, in the last mention, implored the prosecution to withdraw charge against him and reinstate it once they were ready to proceed with the case.

He had also asked the court for an order that his money and vehicle be returned to him as they were taken away during his arrest although they did not form part of the case.

During the ill-fated day of the bomb scare, government security agents descended on the area and evacuated employees in adjacent buildings and with the help of sniffer dogs and technological equipment, combed the area but came up with nothing.

The prosecution had claimed that Zebe, 34, called one Omphile Masingwaneng, a property administration officer at Barclays House that there was going to be an explosion between First National Bank building, Poso House building and Barclays House building. ENDS