By OBAKENG MAJE
25 October 2024- The mother of a child, Rethabile Molapo (11) who was found murdered in Modutung village, near Taung, said she has a low trust in the police. Keneseilwe Jackson said the police showed incompetence and misconduct, while handling the case of Molapo.
Molapo went missing on 13 October 2024, after she was sent to go and fetch a church uniform at their house. However, she was kidnapped by unknown individuals and her charred body was found in a pit toilet at an abandoned house a few days later.
Jackson said there are many contributing factors, including miscommunication, brutality, violations of civil rights and a lack of training.
“The police did not respond timeously to the matter after we reported my child as missing. After the charred body of Rethabile was found in a pit toilet, they took away the shepherd who saw it.
“According to the shepherd, he will not continue to give evidence because the police suffocated him with plastic and used excessive force during questioning. He now fears for his life because he has been assaulted and being treated as a suspect,” she said.
Jackson further said the police also sent her from pillar to post when she was supposed to fetch her daughter’s body after post-mortem. She added that all these have contributed to her distress.
The community of Modutung went berserk and embarked on protest. They killed and torched a woman, Omphile Mothusiemang-Legodu (40), and her house after accusing her of kidnapping Rethabile for ritual purposes.
They also burned her son, Kopano Legodu (22), who is in critical condition in hospital.
However, the Dr Ruth Segopomotsi Mompati District Police Commissioner, Brigadier Tshenolo Tlotleng said they will launch investigations against all the police officers, who were involved in misconduct.
The North West MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management, Wessels Morweng, who visited both bereaved families said he will lead a Crime Prevention Imbizo in the area as a form of intervention. Morweng said he is saddened by the unfortunate turn of events.
“As government, we have a great interest in the case because of the nature of how the events unfolded. We have resolved to embark on an Imbizo to bring peace, stability and work together with our community in the creation of a safer environment.
“The police are thoroughly handling investigations into the matter to bring justice to the families and the community at large. I continue to urge everyone to remain calm and allow the police to do their work,” said Morweng.
He said he believes that the police will do justice to the case, the district is working together with the province and all hands are on deck. Morweng said investigations are underway, arrests will be made and perpetrators will be brought to book.
Meanwhile, the Municipal Speaker of Greater Taung Local Municipality (GTLM), Grace Moipolai said: “We welcome the resolution of an Imbizo and the awareness campaign will provide much needed insight on the dangers of crime and how the law works.
“There is a recurring trend in the community of Magogong of missing children and subsequently found dead. Last year, we experienced a similar incident. We now find ourselves here again.”
Moipolai said they believe the Imbizo will educate the people on how to go about in dealing with conflict and to desist from lawlessness. She said the Imbizo will be conducted by way of the District Development Model (DDM), to coordinate all spheres of government and ensure effective and efficient service delivery.
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