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Botswana: Elderly Woman Charged With Possession of Emeralds
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Mmegi/The Reporter (Gaborone)
14 April 2008
Posted to the web 15 April 2008
Oarabile Mosikare
Gaborone
A 66-year-old Tutume woman charged with illegal possession of 91 emeralds has denied the accusation.
Sarah Makwana was reportedly arrested on August 7, 2004 at Nzalo mall in possession of the precious stones after a tip-off. Police Sub-Inspector Mboni Moreki testified last week that she arrested Makwana after getting information that a woman at Nzano mall had emerald. "Upon arrival at around 10:45am we spotted a woman standing by Botswana Telecommunication Corporation phones. We approached the woman and arrested her. I did the initial body search but did not find anything," said Moreki. The woman was taken to the Francistown Police Narcotic and Diamond Squad office and upon arrival, she dropped a small yellow plastic bag on the floor. Contained in the plastic bag were small greenish stones suspected to be emeralds. The suspect was told that the stones would be taken to Lobatse for forensic examination. She was cautioned that she would be charged depending on the results of the examination.
Chief Magistrate Lorraine Makati-Lesang, patiently guided Makwana on how to cross-examine the witness. But Makwana persisted in leading evidence and said that she was undressed in public but nothing was found in her possession.
"As it was in public I would not have undressed her, I just touched her breasts. She was alone and not with the two men as she alleges," countered Moreki. The suspect wanted to know where the plastic bag was when she was searched at Nzano mall. In response, Moreki told the court that she could not undress the elderly suspect in public.
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"But you undressed me. Do you want to tell this honourable court that my breasts have pockets?," asked the agitated Makwana as the court audience burst into laughter. "I tell you that those stones are not mine. Even the good lord knows. The law would absolve me," submitted Makwana before she ended her cross-examination.
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