LETLHOGILE MPUANG
Suspended of the Directorate of Intelligence and Security Service (DISS) agent Welheminah Maswabi, code-named “Butterfly,” says the head of the secret agency Brigadier Peter Magosi wanted her to help him find any kind of incriminating information against Issac Kgosi failing which she would rot in jail, court records have revealed.
“Butterfly” was acquitted on all charges brought against her by the state on Monday this week. The charges included terrorism financing, failing to account for property in her possession and false declaration of passports.
In his ruling, Justice Zein Kebonang stated that the allegations raised by the state were fabricated and that action should be taken against all individuals involved.
He noted that “Butterfly” indicated in her affidavit that Magosi had approached her in order to assist him gather information that would incriminate Kgosi. Kgosi and “Butterfly” are alleged to have been close during Kgosi’s time as director general of DISS.
“The Applicant also stated in her affidavit that Mr. Magosi, the current Director General of the Directorate of Intelligence and Security Service (DISS), had asked her to help him dig some dirt on Mr. Kgosi and that if she did not, she would languish in jail and there would be nothing that he could then do for her,” Justice Kebonang noted.
“The applicant maintained that the entire affidavit by Mr. Hubona was a fabrication. She denied any knowledge of a sum of USD48 000 000.00 (Forty Eight Million Dollars) ever being transferred into the accounts of a company called Kgethan Ltd, in South Africa, from Hong Kong and that Mr Kgosi was a signatory to the said accounts.”
According to the judgment, the state decided to deliberately exclude some of the statements that were provided by some of the witnesses. “Butterfly,” through her defence attorneys, said that the owner of the said company had met with certain officers from Botswana and confirmed to them that he was the sole signatory to the company’s account and that neither the applicant nor Mr Kgosi were known to him.
“She stated that the state had deliberately concealed and kept out of court Mr Mokgatla’s sworn statement which had been deposed to on the 25th September 2019,” the judge noted. “Faced with the applicant’s founding affidavit, the 1st Respondent elected not to file any opposing papers to her new bail application which was eventually granted by Mothobi J in November 2019.
The 1st Respondent in fact filed a notice of non-opposition.” Justice Kebonang determined that it was clear from this narration that Maswabi’s arrest was a coordination involving the Botswana Police, the DPP, DIS and DCEC. “The concealment of information and fabrication was also something those involved in the investigations knew about as they were certainly aware of the correct state of affairs,” he observed.