Lipolelo Thabane murder case

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The murder of Lipolelo Thabane ( ˌdipʊˈlɛlo tʰɑˈbɑnɛ ) occurred on June 14, 2017 in Lesotho . The woman killed was the separated wife of the designated Prime Minister of Lesotho Thomas Thabane , who took office shortly afterwards. In 2020, he and his then girlfriend and current wife 'Maesaiah Thabane were investigated for murder.

prehistory

Thomas Thabane (2014)

Lipolelo Alice Thabane (* 1959) became the second wife of the politician Thomas Thabane (* 1939) in 1987. She had a child with him and raised the four children from his first marriage. In 2012 there was a separation; From then on, Thomas Thabane lived with Liabiloe Ramoholi (* 1977), who later became the politician's third wife. Lipolelo Thabane refused to accept a divorce. During her husband's first term in office between 2012 and 2014, she fought for the right to privileges as first lady . Liabiloe Ramoholi was meanwhile considered a customary wife (for example: "wife according to common law "), without being able to claim privileges.

Sequence of events

Late in the evening of June 14, 2017, Lipolelo Thabane and her friend Thato Sebolla drove to Lipolelo Thabane's house in Ha Masana near Mazenod , about 16 kilometers south of Maseru . Unknown perpetrators fired numerous shots near the house; they killed Thabane and seriously injured Sebolla. Thomas Thabane described the murder as senseless killing ("senseless killing").

Thomas Thabane's inauguration as Prime Minister took place on June 16, 2017. On August 27, 2017, he married Liabiloe Ramoholi in a ceremony at the Setsoto Stadium, which was also attended by foreign state guests . She took the name 'Maesaiah Thabane.

Investigation and political situation after the murder

The investigation was slow. One witness died under unexplained circumstances , according to Amnesty International . According to its own statements, Sebolla asked for witness protection several times in vain .

Large parts of Thomas Thabane's party All Basotho Convention (ABC) accused him from 2018 of allowing his wife to influence his political actions. In February 2019, the ABC received an executive committee in internal party elections, which from then on operated under the leadership of Nqosa Mahao Thabane's replacement. Thabane evaded a parliamentary motion of censure by closing the National Assembly indefinitely.

On January 6, 2020, it became public knowledge that the commander of the Lesotho Mounted Police Service , Holomo Molibeli, had sent a letter to the Prime Minister in December 2019 accusing him of having an admitted on Thabane that night near the crime scene Mobile phone had been communicated. After receiving the letter, Thabane tried unsuccessfully to remove the commander. His attempt to cancel the license of the mobile operator Vodacom Lesotho , on which his device was approved, also failed.

On January 10, 2020, 'Maesaiah Thabane's arrest warrant was issued. Shortly thereafter, she was charged with murder and attempted murder. Sent by profile sought and fled to South Africa. However, she returned on February 3 and surrendered to the authorities. The trial of 'Maesaiah Thabane began on February 5. After a brief hearing in which she denied guilt, she was released on bail . Thato Sebolla then fled to Botswana and eventually South Africa for fear of persecution . On February 18, the trial of 'Maesaiah Thabane was adjourned to March 17, 2020. She is accused of hiring eight people as murderers. Several relatives, Thomas Thabanes and Sebolla, appealed against their release.

On January 16, the South African President Cyril Ramaphosa sent the South African ex-minister Jeff Radebe to Lesotho. He obtained a promise from Thomas Thabanes to want to resign "soon"; a point in time was not given. Numerous Lesothic politicians, including those from the ABC, demanded that he resign immediately. At a demonstration in Maseru on January 24th, several hundred people demanded his resignation. On February 19, the leadership of the ABC demanded resignation the following day.

Thomas Thabane was finally also charged with murder and attempted murder on February 20. He now stated that he wanted to resign by the end of July 2020 and justified this with his old age. He missed a trial on February 21, 2020 to open the indictment, although his lawyers were waiting for him. Instead he went to South Africa "for medical treatment". The court then granted a stay until February 27. Also on February 21, Amnesty International called for improved protection for Witnesses, particularly for Thato Sebolla. The Prime Minister and his wife appeared in court on February 24. He announced through his lawyer that he would like to seek immunity ; the High Court, in its capacity as a constitutional court, is to rule on this. Until then, Thabane has not been formally charged.

Arrest warrants were issued against three other people in early March 2020, including a well-known Lesotho Famo musician who lives in South Africa. The trial was initially postponed until April 14th as the arrest warrants could not be carried out. It was later postponed indefinitely because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the continuing volatile people.

On April 18, 2020, Thomas Thabane allowed military to drive through the streets of Maserus to intimidate the police.

On May 5, 2020, it was revealed that Lipolelo Thabane had agreed to a divorce a few hours before she was murdered; Thato Sebolla confirmed this account.

'Maesaiah Thabane is apparently behind the People's Convention party , which was founded in March 2020, and which, in her opinion, Thomas Thabane should also join. Thomas Thabane had to resign as Prime Minister on May 19, 2020 by decision of the Council of State .

On May 29, 'Maesaiah Thabane's release on bail was judged to be revoked but referred to the High Court for final decision. On June 3, she was detained for the time being.

In June 2020, court documents became known according to which Thomas Thabane should have paid the equivalent of more than 20,000 euros to the shooters. This should have been a deposit.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Michael Vosatka: Wife murdered: Investigations against Lesotho's premier. derstandard.at of February 21, 2020, accessed on February 23, 2020
  2. ↑ a b AFP : Lesotho PM a no-show in court. theeastafrican.co.ke of February 22, 2020 (English), accessed on February 23, 2020
  3. ↑ Pumza Fihlani: Lesotho First Lady Maesaiah Thabane charged with murdering rival. bbc.com of February 5, 2020 (English), accessed on February 23, 2020
  4. ↑ a b Lesotho authorities must protect key witnesses to the murder of Lipolelo Thabane. amnesty.org of February 21, 2020, accessed February 23, 2020
  5. ^ "My life has changed" - Friend of Tom Thabane's murdered wife on life after surviving shooting. Eyewitness News on youtube.com from February 6, 2020 (video), accessed on February 28, 2020
  6. ^ Fractures weaken Lesotho's ruling party. Mail & Guardian, September 5, 2018, accessed February 23, 2020
  7. ↑ Ntsebeng Motsoeli: LCD to go it alone at the polls. lestimes.com dated December 18, 2019, accessed January 6, 2020
  8. ↑ Exposed: government's plan to kick out Vodacom. nwlesotho.co.ls, February 14, 2020, accessed on February 24, 2020
  9. ↑ Lesotho leader's wife murder trial set for March 17. reuters.com of February 18, 2020, accessed on February 23, 2020
  10. ↑ a b c Michael Vosatka: Lesotho's murder suspect prime minister insists on immunity. derstandard.at of February 24, 2020, accessed on February 25, 2020
  11. ↑ Lesotho PM in court on suspicion of murdering wife requests immunity. reuters.com of February 24, 2020 (English), accessed on February 25, 2020
  12. ↑ Lesotho's PM Thomas Thabane seeks immunity over murder of ex-wife. bbc.co.uk of February 24, 2020 (English), accessed on February 25, 2020
  13. ↑ Nthakoana Ngatane: Lesotho musician, 2 others implicated in murder of Lipolelo Thabane. ewn.co.za on March 5, 2020, accessed on March 6, 2020
  14. ↑ Michael Vosatka: Murder trial against Lesotho's First Lady postponed. derstandard.at of March 18, 2020. accessed on March 18, 2020
  15. ↑ Mohalenyane Phakela: Lockdown forces postponement of first lady's case. sundayexpress.co.ls, April 26, 2020, accessed April 26, 2020
  16. ↑ Lesotho's premier relies on help from the military. dw.com from April 18, 2020
  17. ^ Agence France-Presse : Lesotho PM under police investigation deploys army to restore order. theguardian.com of April 18, 2020, accessed April 18, 2020
  18. ↑ Tim Cocks: Lesotho's murdered first lady agreed to divorce on the day she died. swissinfo.ch from May 5, 2020, accessed on May 6, 2020
  19. ↑ Nthakoana Ngatane: Lesotho: First lady Maesaiah Thabane allegedly behind new political party. ewn.co.za, May 8, 2020, accessed May 9, 2020
  20. ^ Lesotho court revokes bail to former lady's bail. africa.cgtn.com of May 30, 2020 (English), accessed May 30, 2020
  21. ↑ Lesotho: former first lady arrested in murder case, police. africa.cgtn.com of June 3, 2020, accessed June 3, 2020
  22. ↑ Lesotho: Serious allegations against ex-head of government. deutschlandfunk.de from June 10, 2020, accessed on June 13, 2020
  23. ↑ Jason Burke: Ex-Lesotho PM paid gang to murder his wife, police say. theguardian.com dated June 11, 2020, accessed June 14, 2020