19 Mar 2014

A 26-year-old man of Mahalapye breathed a sigh of relief this week when Jwaneng magistrate, Mr Odirile Mokgatle discharged and acquitted him.

Mpho Selelo was charged with stealing by servant after a hand drilling machine belonging to his former employer, Diamond Ndeti Construction Company, allegedly disappeared on September 22 last year.

Among the three witnesses that the prosecution had called was the company’s former site foreman, Mr Kelebemang Keofetlhile, who told court that the drilling machine went missing when the company was doing renovations at Jwaneng old community hall last year.

The second witness, Sabata Khunou revealed that the accused person had given him a drilling machine for safe keeping sometime in September last year. He also told court that the accused came back after about two weeks to collect the said machine.

The last witness was the investigating officer Seargent Bakani Majasi who registered the case when the first witness came to report. 

Nonetheless, the magistrate said the prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that indeed the accused had committed the offence because the evidence given by the three witnesses did not link him to the offence.

He said there was no proof of ownership of the said machine by the company and that the first witness only knew the machine by colour and no other specific features. Mr Mokgatle also noted the second witness’ story did not have any value of evidence to the charge and it did not corroborate with the first witness.

Furthermore, he said the evidence provided by the third witness was not helpful as it was based on what the second witness said.  He also said he did not know where the investigating officer got the serial number of the drilling machine because it was never mentioned in the statements and the machine was never recovered. ENDS