MURDER CHARGE: Lesotho PM denies fleeing abroad after failing to appear in court

Thomas Thabane, the Prime Minister of Lesotho, who was allegedly involved in the killing of his better half, has denied fleeing the country after he failed to appear in court to face charges of murdering his estranged wife in the year 2017.

His office said late on Friday that the Prime Minister has gone there for a medical checkup instead, stating further that he (Thomas) respects the rule of law and that he plans to appear before the court when he returns from South Africa.

Paseka Mokete, the Deputy Commissioner of Police had told reporters he was not aware of Mr Thabane’s whereabouts, but said that if he was out of the country receiving treatment then they would wait to resume the case when he returns.

“We cannot at this stage say he is contemptuous [of the court],” he added.

Mr Thabane’s previous wife Lipolelo Thabane, 58, was shot dead in the capital, Maseru, two days before Mr Thabane became prime minister in 2017.

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The Prime Minister whose current wife Maesaiah Thabane has already been charged with the murder would be the first African leader to be charged with a domestic murder while in office, in a case that has shocked the tiny mountain kingdom.

The estranged wife, Lipolelo Thabane 58, was said to have been shot dead by unidentified assailants near her home at the outskirts of the capital in Maseru.

The death of Thabanen sparked controversies as the police also alleged the involvement of the PM’s current wife, Maesaiah Thabane in the assassination.

Maesaiah who is currently in detention and charged for ordering the killing as police reports had claimed, was said to have hired eight assassins to kill the first lady.

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