PARENTS MOURN SLAIN SON
On Saturday night, as the thunder roared and the heavens wept, an elderly Francistown couple abruptly awoke.
It was not the wild weather that roused them from the warmth of their beds but a storm of a different kind.
Wiping sleep from his weary eyes, Moses Gobotsamang Galekhutle and his wife received the news that all parents dread – their son was dead, murdered as he tried to break up a fight.
“My son was a strong man. When he spoke everyone could hear that a man was speaking. Even the week he was killed, his mother urged him to stop playing hero when people fight,” said the devastated 61-year-old, speaking to The Voice from inside his shack in the second city’s Maipaafela location on Monday afternoon.
The tin walls echo eerily as Moses weeps for his slain son.
It is little consolation that the young man died a hero, paying the ultimate price for his bravery.
According to sources in the run-down neighbourhood, 26-year-old Olebogeng Galekhutle was knifed in the neck attempting to intervene in a drunken brawl.
The father-of-two was rushed to Area W clinic but died from his wounds soon after.
Police have since arrested 27-year-old Duncan Olebile Ntshisi in connection with Olebogeng’s murder.
The suspect appeared before Francistown Magistrates Court on Monday and was remanded in custody until his next court appearance, set for December 19.
Again, it is little consolation to Moses and his loved ones.
Continuing his narrative, the old man explained he was awoken on Saturday night by a phone call that would change his life forever.
“I was told that Olebogeng had been stabbed with a knife and had passed on. I did not believe what I heard! I got dressed and went outside the house, where I saw the police coming. That is when I knew it was true, my son was dead,” said Moses, his voice barely rising above a whisper, his dark features tormented with grief.
According to a man who claimed to have witnessed the incident, it was over in less than five minutes.
“Olebogeng and a friend were sat enjoying a few drinks in Maipaafela. Duncan walked passed and they invited him to come and drink with them,” claimed the source, adding the trouble started immediately.
“Duncan slapped the other man. Olebogeng stood and tried to stop the fight, asking Duncan why he was beating up his friend. The accused then brandished a knife and stabbed Olebogeng in the neck before fleeing,” continued the source, agreeing to talk to The Voice on the condition he remains anonymous.
Described as kind-hearted and hard-working by those that knew him, Olebogeng leaves behind five siblings and two children.
His death leaves a dark cloud over the close-knit community.
R.i.p brother