...By Gift BADEWO for TDPel Media.
Technician charged with aiding and abetting prisoner’s escape
A 44-year-old technician who was “contracted to a company that installs and maintains cameras at the Mangaung Correctional Centre” appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court on 13 April, alongside Dr Nandipha Magudumana.
The technician, Teboho Lipholo, faces charges of aiding and abetting a convicted prisoner to escape from lawful custody, defeating the ends of justice and violating a dead body.
Lipholo was arrested by the South African Police Service (SAPS) on 14 April.
Affidavit alleges technician deliberately switched off cameras
According to an affidavit produced by Integritron Integrated Solutions, the company that manages security and surveillance cameras at the Mangaung Correctional Centre for G4S, Lipholo admitted to deliberately switching off the recorders that would have captured Thabo Bester’s escape in May 2022.
Lipholo has been dismissed from the company.
Outdated video equipment
The Committee was also confounded by the fact that the prison uses outdated video equipment – the CCTV footage is recorded on VHS cassettes that are re-used periodically.
According to GroundUp, Lipholo said officials at the G4S-run prison told him to switch off the cameras.
He made these admissions to a translator who helped him during a polygraph test in March.
The test was meant to establish if he had anything to do with Bester’s escape last year.
Other individuals linked to G4S appear in court
Another individual linked to G4S, former prison warder Senohe Matsoara, appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court in connection with the escape this week.
He faces charges alongside Dr Nandipha’s father, Zolile Sekeleni. All four accused are expected to appear in court on 17 April.
Commentary
The case involving the escape of Thabo Bester has taken a new turn with the arrest of Teboho Lipholo.
The affidavit produced by the company managing security and surveillance cameras at Mangaung Correctional Centre for G4S, alleges that Lipholo admitted to deliberately switching off the recorders that would have captured Bester’s escape in May 2022.
The fact that the prison uses outdated video equipment is confounding, and it is disturbing that officials at the G4S-run prison allegedly told Lipholo to switch off the cameras.
This case highlights the urgent need for a complete overhaul of South Africa’s prison system.
