28 Jul 2020

A prosecution witness in the ongoing Morupisi trial has informed the Gaborone High Court on Monday that funds used by Carter Morupisi to purchase a motor vehicle in South Africa were transferred from his savings account. 

Ms Gorata Seboko, head of forensic department at First National Bank Botswana (FNBB) has confirmed that the bank maintains a savings account at its Gaborone main branch under Morupisi’s name. 

Giving her evidence in chief before Judge Mokwadi Gabanagae, Ms Seboko also revealed that Botswana Public Officers Pension Fund (BPOPF), Capital Management Botswana (CMB) and Botswana Opportunities Partnership (BOP) also banked with FNBB, while Manor Squad Services has an account with the bank in South Africa.  

She further confirmed financial transactions between Morupisi’s savings account and Manor Squad Services account. 

“The monetary transactions of 13 payments totaling P495 076. 80 (R630 988. 99) were made between May 17, 2017 and January 15, 2020,” she said. She said the transactions were made in the purchase of a vehicle.

However, Ms Seboko said as she was going through the transactions, she found contradicting details relating to the description of the transactions.

“All the manual transactional slips that were completed by Morupisi stated that the payments were for a vehicle, but the bank statements indicated that the monetary transfers were payments for services,” she said. She said the money that was transferred to the Manor Squad Services’ FNB account in South Africa to pay for the vehicle was from Morupisi’s savings account.

Under cross examination by the defence lead counsel, Mr Busang Manewe, she confirmed that all the 13 monetary transfers from Morupisi’s FNBB savings account to Manor Squad Services in South Africa were indicated as payments for a motor vehicle. Mr Manewe emphasised that the defence’s case was to establish that Morupisi bought the vehicle from his savings and that it was not an act of bribery as alluded. 

Ms Seboko also confirmed that prior to joining FNBB in May 2013, she had worked for the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC) for 13 years as a law enforcement officer. She concurred with the defence attorney that she had never come across a case where one was questioned for buying a vehicle without going through a bank or sourcing funds from a bank. 

When answering one of the defence’s questions, she said, she had in the past sold a vehicle to someone and the bank was only engaged for the purposes of facilitating payment, adding that she does not see anything wrong with Morupisi buying a car from an individual without a bank loan, as long as he had enough funds. 

The case, before Justice Gabanagae at the Gaborone High Court, involves former Permanent Secretary to the President (PSP) Morupisi, R7 Group and Pinny Morupisi. 

The first accused person, Morupisi is facing two counts of corruption and is also on another count, jointly charged with R7 Group and Pinny for money laundering.

On the first count, Morupisi is charged with corruption, contrary to section 24A (1) read with section 24A (3) of the Corruption and Economic Crime Act. 

Particulars of the offence are that whilst employed by the Directorate of Public Service Management (DPSM), serving as a public officer, who held the position of board chairman of the Botswana Public Officers Pension Fund (BPOPF), on or about November 11, 2014 at or near Gaborone, without the final resolution of the board and in abuse of his public office as chairman, and while the board was on suspension, corruptly signed a contract with Capital Management Botswana to administer the BPOPF funds as private equity managers and in the process obtained valuable consideration for himself and his wife’s company R7 Group.

On the second account, Morupisi faces a charge of corruption, contrary to sections 26 and 36 of the Corruption and Economic Crime Act. 

Details of the offence are that on or about May 15, 2017 at or near Gaborone, acting together and in consent with Pinny Morupisi in her personal capacity as the director of R7 Group, he received valuable consideration in the form of a gold Toyota Land Cruiser, pickup of chassis number JTELV73J007011353 and Engine NO: 1VD0357877 valued at R630 988. 99 for himself and his wife’s company, R7 Group.

On the count of money laundering, contrary to section 47(1) (b) of the Proceeds and Instruments of Crime Act, punishable under section 47(3) of the same act, Morupisi, his wife, Pinny and R7 Group, on or about May 15, 2017 in Gaborone, acting together and in consent, received and converted to their personal use, a Toyota Land Cruiser pickup bought from South Africa, whilst they knew or had reasonable grounds for knowing or suspecting that the said vehicle registered B 587 BEW was derived or bought, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly from the commission of an offence. Ends