Man relives cousin's murder in court

Patricia Edwin
Staff Writer | Wednesday May 15, 2013 00:00

Gilbert Seboloko, 39 was a state witness in a case where three men, Gofaone Oitatotse, 27, Balekodi Opelo, 24 and Othugile Baboditse, 28 are accused of killing Gobusamang Seboloko at a party at Kgaswe lands in Serowe area on January 1, 2009.

The three accused persons are represented by Morris Ndawana, Tshekiso Tshekiso and Mishingo Jeremiah respectively.  Seboloko told the court that on the day in question he saw the trio beating up his cousin using an axe handle and other wooden objects they could lay their hands on until he lay motionless on the ground.

He said that he found the deceased person at a social gathering when he arrived. 'I left Serowe village on that day to attend a party at Kgaswe lands and when I got there I found Gobusamang holding an axe-pick handle and said that he had been involved in a fight,' he said.  He said that he told him that it was about time that they returned home to Serowe.

'When I was still convincing him that we should go home, another man that I had never seen before came and told me that he wanted to talk to Gobusamang as they were friends and then they left,' he added. Seboloko told the court that when he looked over he found that his cousin was on the ground being assaulted with an axe-pick and a log by the three accused persons and that he did not manage to help his cousin because the accused persons warned him that if he came anywhere near, they would beat him up too.  'I did not do anything to help,' he said.  Seboloko related the events to the court saying that the deceased person was beaten up until he lost consciousness and lay motionless and that is when the accused persons left him.

'They were just beating him randomly while his head was moving from side to side until he was motionless,' he said. He further told the court that he then went to Serowe to tell his parents and report to the police.  The defence position is that the deceased was provocative and aggressive that night as he had been involved in a fight with one of the accused persons' cousin earlier that night. Seboloko admitted that some events might have taken place before he arrived and that his cousin had admitted to being in a fight earlier in the evening. Justice Phadi Solomon presided over the case.