‘Police station of horror’
MASERU — The Lithoteng Police Station, which is headed by Senior Inspector Lenkoane Lenkoane, has a reputation of using brute force when interrogating crime suspects.
The station is known to use crude interrogation methods akin to those practised by the South African police during apartheid.
Several cases of the police officers at the station using boots, sticks and gun butts to force crime suspects to confess are rampant.
In some cases victims have been suffocated with tyre tubes and plastic bags.
Others have been tightly cuffed for hours while being interrogated.
Still others have been held in dirty and wet cells for days without being charged.
The result is that people are terrified by the prospect of being held at the Lithoteng police station.
Take for instance a 25-year-old man in March last year allegedly opted to hang himself after he saw officers from Lithoteng police station coming to arrest him.
It is alleged that when he saw the police he rushed to a neighbour’s house where he hanged himself.
Police spokesperson Masupha Masupha (right) said the man was wanted in connection with the theft of two laptops from the National University of Lesotho.
In February 2011, the Lithoteng police allegedly severely battered a suspect, detained him in holding cells for four days and demanded that his wife pay a bribe to secure his release.
The suspect, Tšeliso Thatjane, 25, told the Lesotho Times then that the police used a knobkerrie to hit him on the buttocks and on the back to force him to confess that he had stolen a television and a DVD player.
He said they had also suffocated him with a plastic bag until he lost consciousness.
The police had also dunked his head into a plastic bag full of water until he lost consciousness again.
One of the police officers who tortured him, he said, was reeking of alcohol.
“I cried out aloud asking them to show mercy but they responded with more violence,” Thatjane said.
One of them used his booted feet to pin his head down while he held his hands so the others could beat him.
All the while they demanded that he admits to stealing the television and the DVD player.
He said when he did not confess a female police officer announced that he “should kiss a black lady”.
The “black lady” turned out to be a black plastic bag which was used to suffocate the suspect until he lost consciousness.
When he regained consciousness his tormenters suffocated him with the plastic bag again until he passed out for the second time.
The police took M500 from his wife, ’Masebabatso, but they did not release him until she hired a lawyer who applied for his immediate release at the magistrate’s court.
Comment by M on 14 February 2013:
This behaviour is disgusting; not even animals are so senselessly brutal. It’s unfortunate that even if “investigations” are conducted into police brutality it is not a given that there will be consequences for perpetrators. When was the last time anyone heard of abusive police being punished in any way or being fired? Our men & women in uniform need serious retraining, not just in interrogation techniques: crime scene analysis, sensitivity to victims reporting crimes etc. Infrastructure also needs to be put in place to effect positive changes
Comment by monatala on 14 February 2013:
Lenkoane and your fellow insane “dogs” lentse le tla lechabela. botsang the south african aparthaid gods, Mosisili, Malema etc.
khapha tsa rona ha li na fella fats’e
Comment by Shakhane on 14 February 2013:
It is very sad to hear how people get such illtreatment from the police. People think police need retraining but my opinion is that they are well trained but there is no infrastructure that would enable them to apply accepted methods of suspect interview. Take for instance: one criminal takes your possessions and gets arrested thus coming back from the police after 48hrs without having appeared before the court of law simply because he sad he did not take it. STOP CRIME.
Comment by ABCLCDBNP on 14 February 2013:
DISGUSTING!!!!!!!
Comment by Bobete on 14 February 2013:
Lesholu le lefa ka hloho ea lona, ke polelo ea khale ea sesotho, so what. Ha o so senyetsoe o tla hauhela masholu. Libaka tse ikarabellang sepoleseng sa Lithoteng bana ba teng boholo ha ba sebebetse ke batho ba “blomang ” lishopong. Ba utsoa tsatsi le chabile, hantle ba inkela. This human rights thing should not be one sided.
Comment by kotompana on 14 February 2013:
Stop calling that institution ‘College’ because the college does not produce uncooked outputs, look at LCE (NTTC), Roma College of Nursing, NHTC etc.
It has not even registered with Lesotho Universities & Colleges Sports Association because it , in reality, not a college.
the college does not produce tyrants who brag publicly about inhumane activities.
Comment by Mokoepa on 14 February 2013:
Lithoteng ke ha satane!!
Comment by Oa Likoetseng on 14 February 2013:
Bashanyana ba teng mona ba aparang kipanyana tsee khubelu ba ntseng ba qabanya basebetsi ka lifemeng ka ha Thetsane, ke bona eka ha ba ka jella weekend ele ‘ngoe feela mono batla its’ela konoso.
Comment by Chehe on 14 February 2013:
Re ne ntse re maketse, ho etsahala meleko mono. @ monatala ihlile le tla ba chabela. Ra ea ra e fumana karabo, ke basali le banna ba babang feela mono lithoteng ba imetsoeng ke mathata.
Comment by Chehe on 14 February 2013:
“He said when he did not confess a female police officer announced that he “should kiss a black lady”.
The “black lady” turned out to be a black plastic bag which was used to suffocate the suspect until he lost consciousness.”
Rea leboha Lesotho times. Ke litaba tsa basali ba mapolesa a Lithoteng hee tsena, joale baa senoleha.
Re kopa kamoso le behe linepe tsa bona mona joaloka lipampiri tse ling.
Eleng hore motho aka etselletsa e mong a tseba hantle hore o ilo etsoa ntja tjee, banna le basali ba hae ba mo hlokofalletse motho? Jeeeses!
Le ntse le tla ba chabela, Basotho ke batho ba liehang ho koata!
Comment by Mokola on 14 February 2013:
leponesa la pota banna: moiseng mohlomi this man is out of order.
Comment by Sekepe on 14 February 2013:
Ntja tsa `muso li hloka koetliso ele ka `nete hoba joale ena ea ho interrogata hoa nyolesetsa ho bona, hoo ba t`sepelang likhokeng. “litlokotsebe le tsona ke batho hleng banna”
Comment by Bobatsi on 15 February 2013:
jwale mona hee lenkoane o epela maponesa lebitla.. Ipotse feela na if ba o torturile osena molato na bohlooko bono ba hao na botlisa lehloyo le lekakang ho maponesa.. Ka modimo nna motho aka jewa ke koalepe khidik.. Hee re khathetse ke koata tsena tsa dikhakhathi
Comment by Sanko on 16 February 2013:
“Take for instance a 25-year-old man in March last year allegedly opted to hang himself after he saw officers from Lithoteng police station coming to arrest him.” A law abiding citizen will not just run and hang just because he or she sees a police officer. It holds true, when our fathers used to say ” e sebebe e ea its’oha”
If these (e.g the self-hanging combrade) are the people Lenkoane is talking about, i support him fully. In the case of a self-hanging dude, it is clear the our men “ba ba tseka” had done their detective work to the letter. They had identified a suspect out of the 2 mlllion other citizens and the moment he saw them he did a noble act and did not waste our taxes.
To those who think police arrest suspects at random, please think again. Why have you and i never been suspected of crime? Those who end-up being on a shot list, deserve being there somehow “etsoe ha ho mosi o qobang ho se na mollo”
Comment by Lai Thekhe - Motho a oa on 16 February 2013:
Lefefooane o batleha mona hee ake atlo bolella lithotsela tsena hore ‘melaelloa haa molato ho fihlela a fumanoa ale molato ke lekhotla la linyeoe.
Comment by Ua Bochabela on 16 February 2013:
O kae lefefooane! Ako hlaelle mona hle mshanaeso ena taba keutloa kare ebatla uena.
Comment by Oa Lithoteng on 16 February 2013:
I used to live in Lithoteng. Criminals there are vicious and fear nobody! Maybe something out the ordinary needed to be done. Believe me when I say, I don’t agree with what happens at Lithoteng police station, but I understand why it happens.
God forbid, but if you’ve had someone close to you robbed and then raped by those gangs, you’ll also understand why police have to use such means.
Comment by Sanko on 16 February 2013:
Lai thekhe, lithotsela ke lebitso la khaitseli ea malome oa hau la timiting!
Comment by Tokawabatho on 18 February 2013:
it is very disgusting to hear that in Lesotho we are still in apartheid movement.
Le `mmusong oo hontse hole jeee.
Comment by LEO-TY on 18 February 2013:
I agree with inspector Lenkoane that sjambok must do it job . Those who do not agree , do not know the extend of crime and the cruel nature of criminals in this country .
Let one of their close relatives be raped and killed , then they will start to talk sense .
For example i read an article on British telegraph that when Prince Harry was in Lesotho . He was shown a six years old child who was raped and cut off both her legs . This is what Lenkoane is trying to uproot in our society .
Comment by Gaddafi on 19 February 2013:
We are really sick and tired of these brutal criminals in this dirty country. I cannot blame the Police whilst these brutal criminals continue torturing us, violating our right to live the way they like. Basotho are real liars on earth because they always insult Police when dragging their feet that they ignore the innocent people being tortured by criminals. But when Police do their work they talk too much, hurling insult to Police that they torture criminals blah blah blah!
Re tennoe ke likoeta kahara naha ena. Re tennoe ke banna ba bolaeang batho fela tjena kamoo ba ratang. Re tennoe ke banna ba re utsoetsang lithepa tsa rona malapeng a rona joalokaha eka re mohaung oa bona. Re tennoe ke banna ba betang basali le bana kamoo ba ratang ba ba ts’oetsa AIDS ena ea bona. Mapolesa ha a shape likoeta tsena hle tse re tellang maphelong a rona. Ba ba emelang ke likoeta le bona, ‘me ba ts’ohile hore le bona ba tla otloa.
Comment by Gaddafi on 19 February 2013:
Tokawabatho
Ha e tlaba hare ‘musong oa apartheid hoea ka uena, re tlameha hore re phele tlasa mohau oa likoeta Lesotho moo? Re tlameha hore re mamelle banna ba betang basali le bana Lesotho moo, ebe re ikotla lifuba ka molao o tauoeng o reng banna ba likoeta ba na le litokelo? Re tlameha ho phela ka matsoalo kahara matlo a rona bosiu le mots’eare hobane fela re ts’ohile likoeta tse ikentseng lipoho tsa khothu Lesotho moo holima rona? Che le tlameha le le likoeta lona bohle ba buellang likoeta tsena Lesotho mona.
Comment by makoa on 19 February 2013:
Eleng hore le lona lepolesa ha le o nyela ole khakhathe, ba tlo re tseba hobane ba qetoa ke ho se rutehe ba oela batho ba le joalo.
Ha re khaotseng ho isana khotla re ikhakhathele likoeta tsa mapolesa, tse jang litjotjo.
Motho o botsitse hore na teng ha ba ka khakhatha motho ea etsellelitsoeng teng ho etsoeng.
Comment by 'Mopane on 19 February 2013:
@Makoa,
Basotho ba tellang ke bana ba rutehileng hobane ba nahana hore ba betere, ba ipona eka ke melingoana ea Basotho mataoa ana a likatana a fumaneng lidegree ka ho kotana NUL koana.
Comment by bamza on 25 February 2013:
Ne ntse ke maketse he maGCE ano a sebetsang lithoteng a sele…ha ba phethe mosebetsi wa bona hoholo ke ho tortura batho…nxa sis he sepolesa sa Lesotho se tsoile taolong…they are so unproffesional yes ehlile bo they are unproffesional….kapa ba bolotse na ba ba Lithoteng. POOR SERVICE DELIVERY LMPS LITHOTENG.
@ ‘Mopane hahahaha shame uon u idiot u fumane degree ka ho kotana wena???u bua mahlabisa lihlong ke sure u le leng leGCE le ntse le khakhatha batho mona…degree ya sebeletsoa ha e kotaneloe monna?kapa mosali towe.mapolesa ana a tella a hloka ho choatluwa hlooho tse thata tsena.nxa sis