Author: The Free Stater

Three Zimbabwean men have each been sentenced to an effective 30 years imprisonment by the Springfontein Magistrates Court after they were found guilty of theft and possession of stolen cellphone tower batteries. Clive Hove, 28, Washington Khoza, 32, and Patrick Chirambadare, 34, each faced two main counts – tampering with or damage of essential infrastructure and theft of 12 MTN batteries as well as tampering with or damage of essential infrastructure and theft of 12 Vodacom batteries. The accused were sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for each count. This means they will each serve a total of 30 years in jail…

Police pounced on at least four men who were separating large quantities of copper cable from the insulation in a bushy area near a railway line in Mannys, Welkom, on Tuesday. However, all the suspects managed to escape when approached by the police. Police spokesperson for the Lejweleputswa district Captain Stephen Thakeng said the tactical team was on a vehicle patrol in Mannys when they noticed a plume of black smoke coming from the railway line just before 8am. “The two members approached the spot from where the smoke came and there were more than four (men) who ran away…

A 25-year-old man from Villiers, north-eastern Free State, has gone missing after he was allegedly picked up while sleeping at his house over the weekend by three men posing as police officers, claiming he was involved in a fight. Fezile Dabi district police spokesperson Sergeant Josephine Rani said in a statement police are now treating it as kidnapping because the man, Simon Fana Mthembu, was never arrested by Villiers police and the people who took him are not police officers. The victim’s girlfriend, Nthabiseng, told police that at about 22.30 on Saturday, the couple was sleeping together with their baby…

The Hawks’ Serious Commercial Crime Investigation team based in Bethlehem in the Free State is appealing to the public to assist in tracing Moeketsi Ntshasa who is wanted in connection with an investigation into a bogus investment scheme in which he is believed to have conned several people out of about R15-million. Provincial spokesperson for the Hawks, Captain Christopher Singo, said in a statement released on Friday that Ntshasa is believed to have conned people over a three-year period with the promise of a 10 percent return on investment but disappeared without fulfilling the promise to the investors. “It is…

Free State Education MEC Tate Makgoe has expressed shock after a Grade 6 learner at Zama Primary School in Zastron was allegedly stabbed to death by a fellow pupil with a knife on Wednesday. The provincial education department said in a statement the incident happened after school, about 600 metres from the school premises. It is believed a brawl initially broke out between the two learners, both male, in the morning at the school after the suspect allegedly bullied and attempted to stab the now deceased learner with a spoon. The suspect was called to the principal’s office and instructed…

The ANC in the Free State has welcomed the arrest of a man believed to be the brains behind the killing of Piet Moletsane, an aspiring ward councillor for Virginia in Matjhabeng Local Municipality, who was gunned down in September last year. Sephiri Jan Liphoko, 44, a former ward councillor, appeared in the Virginia Magistrates Court on Wednesday facing a charge of murder. Police tracked him down over the weekend after the alleged hitmen, who were arrested in January this year, told members of the police’s provincial organised crime unit who sent them to eliminate Moletsane. The case was postponed…

I recently wrote about the new law making it compulsory for sellers to make a declaration about the condition of the property they are putting on the market so that the buyer is fully aware of its condition including faults that may need to be fixed. I am told there is a Gauteng family that bought a house at an auction only to find it occupied by “illegal tenants” who did not want to move out. I have been asked discuss how this can be avoided or addressed. My advice is simple: sellers should declare what they know about the…

A man believed to be the brains behind the killing of Piet Moletsane, an aspiring ward councillor for Virginia in Matjhabeng Local Municipality in September last year, has been arrested. The suspect, a former ward councillor, is expected to appear in the Virginia Magistrates Court on Wednesday. Police tracked him down over the weekend after the alleged hitmen, who were arrested earlier this year, spilled the beans on who sent them to gun down Moletsane following intensive interrogation by the organised crime unit. Provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Motantsi Makhele said Moletsane was shot and killed on September 23, 2021 while…

The State Capture Commission wants former Free State MEC for human settlements Mosebenzi Zwane investigated for failing to provide “proper provincial leadership” in a failed R1-billion provincial housing project. The department’s former head, Nthimotse Mokhesi, told the commission, led by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, that his office had made an advance payment of more than R500-million to the project’s contractors before any work was done. Described in the fourth part of the State Capture Commission’s report as a “dismal failure”, the housing project was dogged by several factors including a decision by former Free State premier Ace Magashule to build…

Chief Justice Raymond Zondo has not made any recommendations in his latest state capture report for a criminal investigation against former Free State premier Ace Magashule for his role in the failed 2014 asbestos eradication project for which he is currently standing trial. Zondo, in the fourth part of the State Capture Commission’s report, instead recommended that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) consider charges against the head of the Free State human settlements department, Nthimotse Mokhesi; businessman Edwin Sodi; and former director-general of the department of human settlements Thabane Wiseman Zulu for their roles in the asbestos audit and removal…