Off the hook

Leungo Mokgwathi
FREE AT LAST: Moagi Koloi

Court frees athlete from rape charge

After frequenting the courtroom every other month for the past three years, justice has finally prevailed for Moagi Koloi who was discharged and acquitted of a rape charge he has vehemently denied from the onset.

After numerous witness testimonies including that of a Forensic Scientist and Medical Doctor who both found no physical and scientific evidence tying the accused to the crime, Village Chief Magistrate Daniel Nkau finally freed Koloi on 24th July 2023.

In an interview with this publication after the judgment was passed, Koloi expressed relief for finally being liberated from the grueling experience of being a rape suspect. “I have always known that I was innocent and I am grateful that the world is now aware of that too,” he said, short of breath from excitement.

Koloi counted himself among the blessed as he distantly thought of the men who are wrongfully incarcerated over a false rape charge. “I wish people would make noise when innocent men are pronounced innocent, the same way they do when a woman is supposedly raped.”

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According to Koloi, had the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) not delayed to call the medical doctor and forensic scientist to present their findings in court, the case could have long been over. “It’s as if they disagreed with the findings,” he shared.

“I have no idea how to return back to normal life because this case has really affected me, considering the amount of money I spent coming to court as well as the emotional distress I endured.”

With no finances to appoint a lawyer, the struggling athlete battled it out in court by himself and eventually ran the race to victory. “I have no idea why she chose to lie and I never got to ask her because she hasn’t even set foot in court ever since she wrongfully accused me.”

Although he is unsure how and where to start, Koloi looks forward to a fresh start.

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