POLICE CONFRONT GANGSTERISM

Police at Botshabelo used the funeral of former Born To Kill (BTK) gang member, Nkosi Machosi last week, to educate the community on gangsterism and its consequences.

Machosi was hacked to death by suspected members of rival gang, Dinotshi. He had joined the BTK gang in August, this year, but later quit. However, his association with the gang was well-known in the community and made him a clear target of a rival gang.

The spokesperson of the police, Consolation Mokoale, told The Weekly that the police were making significant strides in rooting out gangsterism in the area.

“We are confident that we have put a stop to gangsterism in this area. But we felt it was necessary to educate people about gangs and their negative effects on communities. We believe Botshabelo will be a better place henceforth. We will also make sure that peace, tranquillity and security reign in the area,” said Mokoale.

Machosi’s family confirmed that police visibility has increased in their area, which does have a high rate of gang activities.

However, the deceased’s aunt, Suzane Machosi, said a family ritual in honour of her nephew was interrupted by a young man who attempted to cause chaos last Friday.

“He was overpowered by family and mourners and we went ahead with our proceedings. We also heard rumours that there was a group of people looking for my brother. They could not find him. We thank the police for their presence and we hope everything will be fine from now.”

Suzane told The Weekly that her nephew was a good person, who became a victim of peer pressure. She said he realised he had made a wrong decision by joining the gang but unfortunately, he got killed.

Machosi was not the only victim of gang violence in Botshabelo. Thabiso Matamane also had a close shave with death when his grandmother, Rosina Pitso’s house was razed. She still fears the gang will come back to hurt her.

Pitso, a pensioner who supports five people with her old-age grant, told The Weekly that she was still traumatised by the incident:

“When I defied their instructions, they broke all of my windows and left. I told them we were no part of this madness and asked them to leave us alone and stop destroying our hard earned possessions. It was a painful experience,” said the visibly fraught Pitso.