No bail for Els accused
THE THREE accused linked to the attack on a prominent Kimberley businessman, Piet Els, and his partner were denied bail by the Kimberley Magistrate’s Court.
The accused – Morapedi Rankali, Motlalentwe Qhautse and Thuso Ramolo – are facing charges of housebreaking, robbery and rape following an incident which took place in the early morning hours of January 24, when Els and his partner were viciously attacked and tortured by four men who forced their way into the bedroom of Els’ farmhouse.
It is alleged that the attackers took firearms, jewellery, cash and cellphones before fleeing the scene in the farmer’s white Mercedes-Benz, which was later found abandoned next to the R31 road to Barkly West.
The investigating officer in the matter, Warrant Officer Patrick Dibebe, testified that a diamond ring valued at R1.5 million, which was stolen during the attack on Els, was found in the possession of Rankali when police went to a house in Galeshewe in search of another suspect named Karabo.
According to Dibebe, Rankali said that the ring was given to him by Karabo, who is his cousin.
Dibebe also told the court that shoe prints, which matched the takkies ACCUSED: From left: Morapedi Rankali, Motlalentwe Qhautse and Thuso Ramolo, who were denied bail in the Kimberley Magistrate’s Court. of Qhautse and Ramolo, were found at the scene of the crime.
Magistrate Pauline Coollen said on Friday that, although all three accused had told the court that they intended to plead not guilty to the charges and that they had no information regarding the incident, they will have to prove their innocence during trial.
“Applicant one (Rankali) admitted that a ring belonging to the complainant was found on him at the time of his arrest. He, however, said that the ring was given to him by his cousin. He is linked to the case by the said ring which was found on him,” Coollen said.
“Applicant two (Qhautse) and three (Ramolo) also confirmed that they were the owners of the shoes of which footprints were found at the scene of the crime. They were only arrested after confirmation from the K9 unit that the footprints belonged to their shoes. An expert will testify during the trial about all the evidence collected at the scene.”
Coollen also said that the fact that the accused are in the country illegally could pose a challenge to the conclusion of the police investigation.
“There are still outstanding investigations in the matter. The IO said that no statement has yet been taken from the complainant yet because he is still in hospital. There is also an allegation that one of the accused had sexually assaulted the female complainant. However, due to the trauma of the incident, the woman is unable to identify the suspect.
“Applicant one (Rankali) is a Lesotho national and is illegally in the country, which could result in the likelihood that he will evade his trial should he flee back home.
“Applicant two (Qhautse) and three (Ramolo) have got previous convictions. Applicant two also has a pending matter, which is similar to the current one, in a Douglas court. There is a likelihood that, if he is granted bail, he might carry out similar crimes.”
Coollen added that the accused showed no exceptional circumstances to be released on bail.
“Applicant one (Rankali) is unemployed and has been staying in the country for some time. He said that he has been responsible for taking care of his family in Lesotho.
“Applicant two (Qhautse) said that he was working for a construction company but could not remember the name of the company. He said that he had been taking care of his family in Number Two in Galeshewe.
“Applicant two has a pending case in Douglas. He was released on bail when he was arrested for that matter.
“Applicant three (Ramolo) is from QwaQwa and has been doing piece jobs. He has one previous conviction for trespassing.
“The onus was on the accused to provide exceptional circumstances to the court on why they should be released on bail. That did not happen.
“Due to the seriousness of the matter and the fact that the complainant is still in hospital, it may endanger the health of the complainant if the accused are released on bail,” Coollen said.
The matter was postponed to later this month and all three accused will remain in custody.