Pretoria - Civil rights movement #NotInMyName on Thursday called on the police and National Prosecuting Authority to build and present a watertight case against the man arrested in connection with the brutal knife attack that left Lesedi FM presenter Dimakatso Ratselane with horrible scars and fighting for her life.
The man arrested was on Thursday expected to appearing at the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court for a charge of attempted murder. He was arrested on Tuesday after being on the run for a week.
“We want justice to be served and the harshest of sentences must be given to the man who has done this to our sister,” said #NotInMyName secretary general Themba Masango.
“We want the sentence to be befitting to the crime committed here. The sentence should be one that deters perpetrators of such heinous and evil crime.
“South Africa is today faced with two terrible pandemics – one being coronavirus and the other being gender-based violence and femicide. We cannot sit back.”
Free State police said the wanted man was traced and arrested at his hideout in Ennerdale, Gauteng.
“At about 10.30am, the Free State team supported by Soweto Flying Squad arrived at a house in Ennerdale, where they found the suspect in hiding. He was taken into police custody and will appear in court soon to face a charge of attempted murder,” Free State police spokesperson Brigadier Motantsi Makhele said.
Makhele said the team worked round the clock as soon as the warrant of arrest was issued and followed all leads until the early hours of Tuesday, when intelligence-driven information led them to the house in Gauteng.
Meanwhile, the Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) has applauded the police for their tireless efforts to track down the suspect.
“As the commission, we respect the rule of law. Under our laws, everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty. The purpose of a fair trial is to ensure that justice is delivered for both the accused and the victim. We equally believe that the family of Dimakatso deserves no less than a fairly executed trial,” said CGE chairperson Tamara Mathebula.
“We hope that the State in preparing for this case will up its game to ensure that people’s confidence in the justice system is enhanced, especially for victims and the survivors of violence and gender-based crime and intimate partner violence.”
The CGE has appealed to all South Africans to join hands in fighting violence, and gender-based violence in particular.
The Star