‘Mantoetse Maama
MASERU — A 25-year-old man from Mokhotlong was arrested last Saturday for allegedly battering his 60-year-old father to death in a fight over money.
Police spokesperson Masupha Masupha said the two were involved in a furious fist-fight after the father allegedly paid his son M500 for helping him sheer his sheep, a figure the son complained was too low.
“The two were involved in a fight after the suspect complained about the money his father had paid him. The deceased had paid his son M500 for helping him to sheer his sheep.
“It was not clear how much the suspect had wanted as payment but they were involved in a heated argument that led to a fight,” Masupha said.
The relatives of the deceased and the suspect did not report the murder to the police.
“We received a tip-off that a man had killed his father but his family members never reported the matter. The suspect was arrested during the father’s funeral service and the body was taken back to the mortuary for a postmortem,” he said.
Masupha said there were numerous cases of people failing to report crime incidents especially when the offenders were family members.
“If they had reported the matter they would not have gone through the trouble of preparing for a funeral before police did their investigations.
“The community members were complaining when the police stopped the burial but they had to investigate the case before the deceased was buried,” he said.
Masupha said members of the public must report all crimes they witness to the police to avoid incidents of this nature.
In a separate incident, two students, both aged 18, were arrested in Leribe last week for robbing their principal of a cell-phone and damaging school property.
The police said the suspects, who were writing their Junior Certificate examinations, became violent after the school principal barred them from bringing notebooks into the examination room.
“It was reported that the boys stole their principal’s cell phone and destroyed the school’s property after they were barred from bringing notebooks into the examinations room,” Masupha said.
“The two boys now have a criminal record and this will affect them in future because there are companies that cannot hire a person with a criminal record. It’s better for one to stay out of trouble before they regret it in future.”
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