Central SA
Presiding officer from outside North West welcomed─── KEKELETSO MOSEBETSI 09:41 Thu, 24 Nov 2022
The North West Director of Public Prosecutions has welcomed the appointment of an outside presiding officer in a case against a prosecutor charged with defeating the ends of justice.
This after the Ga-Rankuwa Regional Court's decision to postpone the case against Regina Letshoo (48), a former prosecutor charged with defeating the ends of justice, to 24 January 2023, to allow the appointment of a magistrate from outside of the North West's jurisdiction. OFM News previously reported that Letshoo allegedly took a docket on a case involving a foreign national and omitted information from the docket to favour the accused.
The Provincial Director of Public Prosecutions, Rachel Makhari, welcomed the move to appoint an outside presiding officer and stated that the move will allow them to conduct a fair trial which will not be misconducted by any suspicions of bias.
The North West National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson, Henry Mamothame, said the state is ready to proceed with a pre-trial when the matter resumes next year. He added that Letshoo will remain out on a warning and is expected back in court when the matter resumes.
Mamothame previously stated that the foreign national was charged with possession of the suspected stolen property, driving an unregistered vehicle and failing to produce legal documents. Letshoo's alleged misconduct resulted in the release of the suspect and the matter was struck off the roll.
