14 May 2017

Extension Two magistrate Ntombizodwa Ncube last Thursday denied bail to the four suspects in the case where Township Rollers were robbed of around P200 000.
Molefe Mogatusi, Jeffrey Molefe, Sihlule Mazilawa and George Arabang are accused of attacking Rollers club treasurer, Minkie Molatlhegi on the night of April 15.  They are alleged to have stolen P200 000 worth of gate takings from Rollers premier league match against Mochudi Centre Chiefs, and a Samsung Galaxy S7 phone worth P15 000.
Molatlhegi’s Mercedes Benz sedan, worth P100 000 was also stolen, only to be discovered the following day dumped at Phase IV in Gaborone.
In delivering her judgment on the four’s bail application, the magistrate said in accordance with the constitution, no person shall be denied the right to liberty unless there was reasonable suspicion that they have committed a crime or intend to do so.

She said in denying the accused bail, she had considered the large amount that had been stolen and the fact that they faced a possible 10 year sentence if convicted.
Ms Ncube stated that since the first and second accused already had cases pending before other courts, that reflected negatively on their character.
The prosecution in the case had revealed that Mogatusi has two cases pending before the Broadhurst Magistrate Court, pertaining to robbery and an office break-in, and has had another case at Village, which was withdrawn due to his non-attendance.

Molefe is also said to have a pending armed robbery case, and the magistrate said neither the first nor second accused had disputed the assertions of the prosecution that they had these other criminal cases pending before courts of law.
Ncube considered the evidence presented by the investigating officer, Detective Inspector Elias Segokgo, who had told the court that after the crime was reported, they got information that led them to the arrest of Mogatusi, who led them to Molefe during questioning. 

Molefe is said to have led the investigating officer to a sports bag abandoned at Metsimotlhabe River near Morwa containing tickets from the match in question which were part of the stolen items.
While the prosecution had not yet linked the fourth accused, Arabang to the case, Ncube said she had considered that the investigating officer had requested for time to gather information, and that Arabang could potentially temper with investigations if granted bail.

Inspector Segokgo had told the court that he had been on sick leave when Arabang was detained, and had pleaded with the court for time to probe the suspect.
Arabang handed himself to the police after he had heard that he was wanted, and argued in his bail application that by so doing he had proved trustworthy, a sign that he would be cooperative if he was granted bail.
The police are still on the search for a fifth accused, who is still at large as well as the P200 000 bounty stolen on the day of the crime.
Ncube asked the investigating officer to speed up investigations, and come with a more comprehensive case. ENDS