The first lady of Lesotho, Maesiah Thabane, has been charged with the murder of Prime Minister Thomas Thabane’s previous wife, reported Reuters.
Last month, the police issued an arrest warrant for Maesaiah after she fled the country and didn’t turn up for questioning in connection with the murder of Thabane’s then-estranged wife Lipolelo on June 14, 2017. Surprisingly, she returned to Lesotho on Tuesday and handed herself to police in the capital, Maseru.
“She has been charged with murder alongside eight others who are in Lesotho and South Africa,” Deputy Commissioner of Police Mokete Pasek told reporters, adding that the investigation had been “satisfactorily completed”.
Pasek said police had a strong case against the first lady.
Police Commissioner Holomo Molibeli said Maesiah, who was being held in custody, would be formally charged in court on Wednesday. Eight others are also reportedly facing charges over the murder.
Lipolelo was shot dead outside her home in Lesotho’s capital Maseru two days before Thabane was sworn in as leader of the mountain kingdom. The couple was involved in bitter divorce proceedings at the time of Lipolelo’s death. Thabane and Maesaiah married two months after the murder.
The police have linked a phone call from the crime scene to a number assigned to the prime minister. The police also questioned 80-year-old Thabane over the killing. On that day, hundreds of opposition supporters marched through the streets of the capital, Maseru, demanding his immediate resignation.
Last month the premier announced he was planning to step down after the governing party considered him no longer fit to lead. However, he did not specify when he would resign. He just said it would occur “when all is in order”. But speculation is rife that the arrest warrant issued against Maesaiah is the real reason behind his stepping down.
