Tefo Tefo
THE much-postponed double ritual murder trial of Koalabata resident, Lehlohonolo Scott and his mother, ‘Malehlohonolo, failed to kick off on Monday due to the latter’s prolonged illness.
Lehlohonolo and his mother are facing murder charges at the High Court for allegedly killing two Koalabata boys whose mutilated bodies were discovered in 2012.
The case was scheduled to proceed on 21 March 2017, but it had to be postponed after ‘Malehlohonolo was taken ill and diagnosed as suffering from tuberculosis.
The case was postponed to 2 May, 2017 but failed to proceed, resulting in a further postponement to 24 July 2017 because ‘Malehlohonolo was still unfit to stand trial.
And again on Monday, the case failed to proceed because ‘Malehlohonolo did not attend the court proceedings on account of her illness. It is now expected that both accused and the lawyers will appear before the court on 22 August, 2017 to map a way forward.
Lehlohonolo (30) and his mother ’Malehlohonolo (60) are accused of the murder of fellow Koalabata residents, Moholobela Seetsa (13) and Mohata (22) in January and June 2012 respectively.
The Scotts were arrested on 12 July 2012 following the discovery of Seetsa and Mohata’s mutilated bodies in Koalabata. The mutilation of the bodies led to speculation the two had been killed for ritual purposes.
Lehlohonolo has previously complained of unfair treatment, claiming in his December 2016 court testimony that prior to his arrest, the police used unprintable insults depicting his mother’s private parts while they allegedly manhandled and accused him of being a member of the-then opposition, All Basotho Convention (ABC) political party.
In addition to murder, Lehlohonolo also faces the charge of unlawful escape from Maseru Central Prison on 14 October 2012 while awaiting trial.
After almost two years on the run, Lehlohonolo was arrested in Durban on 6 April 2014 and lost his fight against extradition in the Verulam Magistrate’s Court on 5 May, 2015.
He was extradited to Lesotho on 21 October 2015, where he awaits finalisation of his trials in custody.
For her part, ’Malehlohonolo was released on stringent bail conditions in August 2013.
