It’s the material many a scriptwriter would kill for. Many South Africans reckon it would make a killing on Netflix. A serial rapist uses social media to lure unsuspecting victims to his lurches with a promise to launch their modelling careers.
Dubbed the Facebook rapist by the media, Thabo Bester would then rob and violate his victims. The vile monster was eventually arrested and sentenced to a maximum prison sentence following hard work by the police.
In a country blighted by a pandemic of gender-based violence, the removal of one rapist offered scant succour to his victims and society. However, his incarceration at least provided relief that his spree was over.
Last year, prison authorities confirmed that Bester died a fiery death in his single cell at a Mangaung prison facility and an investigation would reveal the cause. Those who believe in an eye for an eye welcomed the news of his demise. However, the guy who went by the alias Thabo Bester was not done playing the system.
He gave himself a new name and continued with his normal life until he was spotted in Sandton without a care in the world.
Suddenly, the authorities sprung into action to contain the embarrassing episode.
So, whose charred body was found in Bester’s single cell?
Latest reports reveal a body was delivered to the facility around the time Bester allegedly “died”. There’s also mystery surrounding his “medical doctor” girlfriend, who has since disappeared into thin air as authorities scamper to interview her.
The word from the authorities is that they are investigating, a code word that they do not have an idea what they are doing. They have also asked the public to report Bester so he can be rearrested.
Bester’s Netflix saga reveals he ran a media company behind bars, which he launched virtually while claiming to be in New York.
We are led to believe that prison warders knew nothing about his shenanigans under their noses. More investigations are on the cards.
Our penitentiary system occasionally reels when inmates post themselves having a party or nookie.
However, Bester’s bravura has exposed a system that is rotten to the core and that enables the scourge of gender-based violence. Bester’s “prison break” was more
daring than that of Mexican drug lord, El Chapo Guzman, who escaped in an underground tunnel riding a motorbike in 2016.
At the time of writing, Bester remains a step ahead of law enforcement and the finale of this riveting series is anybody’s guess. Do not bet against him surfacing at Eskom as the new CEO. In that event, the government can be trusted to “investigate”. After all, they are still investigating how fugitive pastor Shepherd Bushiri skipped bail and crossed our borders to Malawi, his home country from where he throws brickbats at our justice system.
Over to the scriptwriters.
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