Francistown woman linked to dead man’s remains

An unemployed 45-year-old woman appeared before Francistown Magistrates Court on Wednesday morning

accused of unlawfully disposing of her young lover’s dead body.

The body in question is that of Lesotho native, Telamo Edian Lillane. The 35-year-old’s rotting remains were found wrapped in a portable tent, lying in the bushes of Thakadialwa lands near Tonota village on Saturday.

Police suspect the deceased, who was originally from Maseru, could have been dumped as early as 30 July.

His Motswana girlfriend, Boitumelo Veronica Ndlovu has been charged with ‘hindering the burial of a dead body’.

During Ndlovu’s brief court appearance, the Prosecutor, Kenneth Edward explained that the matter was still fresh and investigations were just beginning.

“We oppose the suspect being granted bail,” stated Edward, adding the Investigation Officer (IO) would outline the reasons why Ndlovu should be detained.

However, the IO’s submission was not required as Ndlovu told the court she had no objections to being remanded behind bars.

The accused, who resides in the second city’s upmarket Molapo Estates location, was duly remanded in custody. She will next appear in court on 10 September.

Meanwhile, Tonota Station Commander, Oteng Ngada told The Voice they arrested Ndlovu on Monday after their investigations led back to her.

“After the body’s discovery, some people in the village reported having seen a black car last week coming from the area where the dead man was found. They suspected the car could have been used to transport and dump the body and reported their suspicions to the police.

“We then managed to arrest the owner of the car who happens to be the deceased’s lover.”

Ngada further revealed a post-mortem will be conducted this Thursday to establish whether Lillane was murdered or died of natural causes.

The results are likely to determine whether Ndlovu faces any additional charges.

The accused is alleged to have told the police she was too scared to report her lover’s death because he was in the country illegally and instead chose to dump his body.