06 Jun 2019

Tsabong Magistrate Gofaone Mosweu has ordered Detective Inspector Emmanuel Lesetedi to provide thorough circumstantial independent evidence rather than rely on narrations from the victim, the accused and the crime scene. 

The presiding officer ordered Detective Lesetedi to carry out independent investigations to aid the court in a case in which 21- year-old Mookedi Keabile is accused of raping his 19-year-old ex-girlfriend behind LadyK Bar in Tsabong. 

The incident took place on October 27, 2017 after which the victim reported to the Police that the sexual act was not consented to. 

On the other hand, the accused denied and maintained that it was consented as they left the bar and had sex about 30 metres away from the premises. 

Narrating the events, Detective Lesetedi, who took over the case on October 28, 2017 said the victim had alleged that she knew the accused as her ex-boyfriend, who was then located and arrested.

On the same day, both the victim and the accused led the investigating officer to the scene, where the alleged sexual encounter took place. 

While at the spot, he said he observed what he termed ‘struggle marks’ and two used condoms,  which he collected and sealed in two separate rubber latex gloves and informed the accused that the condoms were going to be taken to the Police Forensic Laboratory for deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) analysis, while the plaintiff was taken to Tsabong Primary Hospital for medical examinations, where a medical report was compiled.

The results were then received in the form of affidavit suggesting that the DNA profile found on the used condoms belonged to both the accused person and the plaintiff. 

Meanwhile, the medical report of the victim reflected no visible marks of assault during the act. 

Under cross-examination, the state prosecutor questioned the detective on whether the victim informed him of any assault by the accused.

The detective responded that the victim told him the accused person had slapped her though there were no visible physical injuries at the time.  

The accused person denied the allegation.

The prosecutor also questioned why the victim, when giving her account of events, did not scream for help during the alleged act, but the investigating officer said she did not as she feared that people who were nearer at the time, might have been connected somehow to the accused. 

The victim had earlier narrated that she was dragged under a sexanana tree and assaulted before the alleged sexual act took place. 

The victim had also said she was beaten with a log of wood to which the accused person also refuted.  

Keabile had admitted strongly that the intercourse took place and was adamant that it was consented for.

Without other witnesses, Magistrate Mosweu called for Detective Lesetedi to dig deeper and provide thorough investigations.

“Apart from the victim’s narration of events, did you find any independent evidence, ” the magistrate questioned.

In response, the detective said, “Well, because the rape occurred between the two and there were no eye witnesses apart from the fact that the victim and the accused left the bar together, there has never been anything independent that I could rely on,” he said. 

Magistrate Mosweu ordered for further thorough investigations as it had emerged that the duo broke out from their love affair two weeks before the alleged rape.  

“Did you ever look at these factors? In this matter there are so many factors around the consent and there is nothing wrong with a woman saying no to either their husband or their boyfriend. 

It comes to the court to judge whether there was consent. And we look at all these factors before giving a judgment. If these circumstances are not there it becomes hard for the court to decide. I want to know the condition she was in after the alleged rape.” Judgment is scheduled for July 24. ENDS