Author: The Free Stater

At least 13 people have died following a motor vehicle accident on the N1 between the Verkeerdevlei Plaza and Winburg in the Free State province in the early hours of Monday. In a statement, the provincial Department of Police, Roads and Transport said it is believed that around 03:25am a truck collided with a taxi on the N1, 17 kilometres before the Verkeerdevlei Plaza on the way to Winburg. Thirteen people were declared dead on the scene, according to the department. Two passengers were critically injured while one sustained minor injuries and they were taken to the Pelonomi Hospital in Bloemfontein. The south-bound…

Bloemfontein police have opened an inquiry into the cause of the fire that broke out at Samson’s Building, popularly known as China City Mall, on Monday night. No casualties have been reported but the fire is said to have caused extensive damage to the building which is situated at the corner of Charlotte Maxeke and Fitchardt streets in the city centre. Police spokesperson for Mangaung Lieutenant Colonel Thabo Covane said in a statement police on patrol at about 7pm on Monday noticed smoke coming from the rooftop of the shopping complex and decided to investigate. “The Fire Brigade . .…

Two businessmen from Gauteng were released on bail of R10 000 each, after they appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrates Court facing 35 counts of tax fraud. Khothatso Isaac Moletsane, 48, and Tumelo Peter Moletsane, 54, were charged together with their company, Mol Pro Consulting (Pty) Ltd, for allegedly defrauding the South African Revenue Services (SARS) of approximately R116.7 million by under-declaring the trading activities of their company. According to the state, between December 2011 and May 2019, the two businessmen, who were the directors of Mol Pro Consulting, allegedly submitted nil returns to SARS on behalf of their company by…

Two former Free State policemen who created a safe passage for illegal immigrants from Lesotho to enter South Africa without proper documents, have been found guilty. Phillip Molefi Mofokeng, 57, and Kgeola John Mofokeng, 41, were convicted and sentenced for corruption by the Bethlehem Magistrates Court on Wednesday. “Their conviction originates from the incidents which took place in 2012 where two former police officials were allowing illegal immigrants from Lesotho without proper documents to enter the country, after charging each of them R150. “The matter was then reported to the Hawks’ Serious Corruption Investigation team based in Bloemfontein for further…

More than a decade after becoming the scene of an infamous video in which black workers were tormented by white students, Reitz is among the five residences that the University of the Free State (UFS) has renamed at its Bloemfontein campus. It will now be known as Toa Mageuzi, a Kiswahili phrase meaning towards progression, evolution or transformation. The UFS announced the name changes on Thursday, Reitz became infamous in 2008 when white students – later known as the Reitz Four – plunged South African race relations into crisis after they made an “initiation” video which showed five black workers…

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s future as South Africa’s leader is hanging in the balance after a report by an independent panel said he abused his position and may have broken the law in connection with a large sum of cash stolen from his game farm. He is now facing a possible impeachment threat over the ‘farmgate’ scandal, with his party, the ANC, expected to meet this Friday to discuss the findings. Ramaphosa has been accused of covering up the theft of about R60-million from his Phala Phala game farm in Limpopo in February 2020. The issue only came to light in…

Parliament has reprimanded Deputy Minister in the Presidency Pinky Kekana for failing to declare the R170 000 she received from controversial businessman Edwin Sodi, who is at the centre of the Free State asbestos project scandal. She was censured during the National Assembly’s plenary sitting on Wednesday. This follows the adoption by the National Assembly of the report of its joint committee on ethics and members’ interests. The committee’s report recommended that Kekana be reprimanded in the House after she was found to have breached the code which requires her to declare financial benefits to Parliament. The deputy minister was…

The Free State High Court has set free a man serving a life sentence for raping a three-year-old girl after a record of his trial proceedings could not be found. Neo Dennis Mofokeng was jailed on 12 June 2012 after the Frankfort Regional Court found him guilty of molesting the toddler. However, he lodged an appeal against both his conviction and sentence contending that the state had failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. The appeal was set down for hearing on 14 November this year. However, the High Court found itself in a predicament where it could…

The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) in Bloemfontein has ruled that the decision to release former president Jacob Zuma on early medical parole was “unlawful” and that he should return to prison to finish his sentence for contempt of court. Zuma was last year handed a 15-month prison term after he ignored a court order to testify at a government inquiry into widespread corruption during his time at the helm of the government. However, he served only two months before he was in September last year released on parole for medical reasons that remain unclear. But, in December, the High…

Paramedics who attended to the three-year-old boy mauled to death by dogs in the Free State over the weekend have been sent for counselling after the gruesome incident reportedly left them traumatised. The toddler, Keketso Saule, was declared dead on the scene after he suffered severe head injuries from the attack by a neighbour’s pitbulls in Hennenman, a small town in the Lejeleputswa district, on Sunday. The Free State Department of Health says its emergency medical services members who attended the incident “couldn’t hold back their tears”. “They have as a result been afforded time off. They will be attending…