“While we were about to leave the road block progressing with our journey a police officer stormed out of the police car and shot at our car. He shot at the door of the car….he nearly injured us and we just packed in the middle of the road as we were terrified,”
TSAONE SEGAETSHO
A family got the shock of their life when a Botswana Police’s Special Support Group (SSG) agent on patrol fired a lethal shot at them after they drove through a road block at Jackalas Number 1 village.
Obert Sechele, who was transporting his family which included a four months toddler and his elderly sister, says they were given two contrasting instructions by the officers manning the road block at Chithawa Lodge. According to Sechele, an officer directing traffic on the road signaled him to pass, while the other one on the side of the road signaled to stop. He says while he was confused, he followed the instruction of the officer on the road, and that is when an armed SSG officer on the side of the road opened fire hitting their car on the side.
“While we were about to leave the road block, progressing with our journey, a police officer stormed out of the police car and shot at our car. He shot at the door of the car…nearly injured us or worse killed us. We just packed in the middle of the road as we were terrified,” Sechele told The Botswana Gazette.
Sechele says he was most upset by the fact that after firing at them, the officer in question did not bother to check if anyone was injured, let alone establish if the car was drivable after shooting at it. He then drove his family home following a near altercation with the police. “They then came to my house to apologize. I asked them what were they apologizing for since they already did the damage and could have wiped us all if it was not for God…they nearly killed us,” he said emotionally.
Sechele says he wants to take legal action against the police because he feels he was unfairly victimized and endangered by them. He is also critical of the manner in which the police conducted the road block as they seemed uncoordinated; he says they should have approached the incident differently without firing at him because he was unarmed.
Police Spokesman Assistant Commissioner Witness Boseja confirmed the incident saying, however, that there were no injuries. He said investigations were on going to establish what transpired. He however could not be drawn into discussing details of the investigations.