Ramoepane murder charge withdrawn

MASERU – A MURDER charge levelled against Major Pitso Ramoepane following the assassination of former Lesotho army boss, Lieutenant General Khoantle Motšomotšo, has now been withdrawn.

A South African lawyer, Advocate Shawn Abrahams, who was hired to prosecute the case, confirmed the development in the High Court on Monday.
Major Ramoepane was charged with the murder of Lt Gen Motšomotšo who was assassinated on September 5, 2017 under controversial circumstances.

Advocate Abrahams said after consulting with the last witness in the matter, he saw it necessary as the crown counsel to advise the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Advocate Hlalefang Motinyane, to withdraw the charge against Major Ramoepane.

The DPP had since accepted the proposal, he said.
“The last witness was consulted on Friday 20 November and I recommended to the DPP to excuse the accused from the case,” he said.
Advocate Abrahams said due to the seriousness of the case, he had also recommended to the DPP that an inquest into the death of Lt Gen Motšomotšo be set up.

He also said he had recommended that the judge who is already seized with the case should be appointed to preside over the inquest.
The inquest, he said, should be held at the High Court premises.
Advocate Abrahams said the withdrawal of Major Ramoepane’s murder charge was in line with provisions of Section 278(3) of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act.

The Act states that the DPP can withdraw charges against an accused person anytime.
However, Advocate Karabo Mohau KC, who is appearing for Major Ramoepane, said he would like to consult with his client to give him directions on the next step to follow.
He said he was only informed of the withdrawal early on Monday morning when the case was due to proceed in court.

Major Ramoepane together with six other soldiers are also being charged with mutiny that resulted in the assassination of Lieutenant General Motšomotšo.
The government says Lt Gen Motšomotšo was gunned down after Brigadier Bulane Sechele and Colonel Tefo Hashatsi confronted him in his office in the early morning of September 5, 2017.

It says Hashatsi and Sechele, who were subsequently killed in a shoot-out at the barracks, were not happy after Lt Gen Motšomotšo decided to hand them over to the police for investigations.
Major Ramoepane has been in detention at the Maseru Maximum Security Prison since September 2017. He was accused of involvement in the Motšomotšo assassination, a charge he was denied.

Major Ramoepane also faces a culpable homicide charge for allegedly shooting and killing Thabo Selemo in Tšenola, Motse-mocha, on 25 August 2007.
Evidence given in the Court Martial revealed that in early September 2017 Major Ramoepane acting in concert with the late Brigadier Bulane Sechele and Colonel Tefo Hashatsi violently resisted a directive to be taken to the police headquarters by confronting and attacking Lt Gen Motšomotšo.

The court heard that Major Ramoepane told Lance Corporal Tefo Molupe on the day of Lt Gen Motšomotšo’s assassination that “he had heard that the late Colonel Hashatsi and Brigadier Bulane Sechele were going to confront the commander”.

L/Corp Molupe said after the shooting he met Major Ramoepane near the main gate of Military Intelligence office.
It is unclear if the charges at the Court Martial will be withdrawn too.
Advocate Karabo Mohau told the court that he would consult his client to get directions on the way forward.

He said the prosecution had not given him enough reasons why all of a sudden they had decided to withdraw the case against his client.
Mohau said Ramoepane had over the last two years applied for bail and the applications were consistently rejected.
“It is a concern that the DPP is withdrawing charges against him, but the reasons are not clear,” he said.

He further explained it would be preferable for the DPP to drop the charges altogether rather than merely withdraw them.
The matter was postponed to next Wednesday for the court to decide on whether it agrees with the DPP or not.
The case was before Justice Onkemetse Bashi Tshosa.

Itumeleng Khoete