Moorosi Tsiane
HIGH Court judge, ‘Mabatšoeneng Hlaele, has slapped Khoabane Mojela, the Principal Chief of Tšakholo, Tebang and Ha- Seleso in Mafeteng, with a hefty 27-year jail sentence for murder.
Chief Mojela was found guilty of the June 2020 murder of his cousin, Tšenolo Letsie.
He has also been ordered to compensate the deceased’s family with four cattle or their commensurate value.
Chief Mojela was found guilty of Mr Letsie’s murder on 14 February 2024 but Justice Hlaele deferred the sentencing to Thursday 21 March.
This was after after Mojela fired one Advocate Makhera, who had represented him throughout the trial.
Chief Mojela instead appointed Adv Jafta Thamae to represent him in mitigation of sentence.
Delivering the sentencing, Justice Hlaele said since Chief Mojela held a very high office in Lesotho. He should not have committed the murder regardless of how deeply he despised the deceased.
“The accused is not an ordinary man in Lesotho but a Principal Chief. Basotho view the office of the Chief as a high office. A chief in Basotho society is the head of administration of a community. He is the law giver, he is the mediator, he is the office of dispute resolution, he is a place where our culture is maintained. In short, he is viewed as the custodian of every Mosotho, especially those he administers,” Justice Hlaele said.
Justice Hlaele said the court could not ignore Chief Mojela’s attitude and behaviour throughout his trial as he never demonstrated arrogance but had at all times been respectful to the court.
“I cannot ignore the demeanour of the person I saw throughout the trial. He (Mojela) displayed the demeanour of one who had outmost respects for the court. He always arrived on time. Although he was not openly remorseful, he was not arrogant and obnoxious,” Justice Hlaele said.
“He respected the court. He also demonstrated that given the opportunity, he is willing to make amends to the family for the loss they had suffered, through ‘raising of the head’ of the deceased (cultural practice). This in our society, is the highest form of remorse. It plays the role of compensation and reparation for emotional loss.”
Justice Hlaele said she had observed that Chief Mojela’s hatred towards the deceased was driven by his sense of justice.
He had therefore felt that things needed to be done right as he hated corruption and those who benefitted from it.
The observation stems from the evidence led in court by Chief Mojela, who described Mr Letsie as a very distasteful man who even bribed his (Mojela’s) father to become the chief of one of the villages in Mafeteng.
However, Justice Hlaele was also quick to also assert that the administration of justice and rule of law were uppermost for every citizen.
Therefore, Chief Mojela’ office should not exonerate him from being punished like everybody else.
“In Lesotho when a principal chief commits a crime, the societal interests of his office should not exonerate him from being punished like an ordinary person. The administration of justice, the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary are upper most in the mind of society in such a situation,” she said.
Justice Hlaele therefore sentenced Chief Mojela to serve 27 years in prison, further ordering him to pay four cattle to the deceased family as compensation to fulfil the “raising of head” cultural practice.
“Having analysed my duty in this regard, I sentence you to 27 years imprisonment. This will include the days you spent in prison since the revocation of your bail,” she ruled.
“In line with jurisprudence of the restoration of justice incorporating the customary principles of Basotho, I order you ‘to raise the deceased’s head’ by compensating the deceased’s family with 4 cattle or the market value of such. The firearm (used in the murder) should be surrendered to the state.”
According to the evidence led by the Crown , Chief Mojela had always despised Mr Letsie and accused him of bewitching him.
On that fateful day, 18 May 2020, Chief Mojela found Mr Letsie at the village shop where he was talking with the its owner. He greeted the owner of the shop, and he started provoking Mr Letsie.
He started by feigning to slap him, but Mr Letsie did not respond. He then accused him of paying witch doctors to bewitch him. He further asked him why he was looking at him “in that (bad) way” when he greeted the shop owner.
As Chief Mojela was provoking, Mr Letsie stood up and left for his car. But before he could reach it, Chief Mojela took out his gun and shot him on the back.
Thereafter, Chief Mojela handed himself over to the police while Mr Letsie was rushed to the clinic. He was referred to Mafeteng Hospital and ultimately the Queen ‘Mamohato Memorial Hospital. Mr Letsie later succumbed to his injuries.