Convicted murderer and rapist Thabo Bester will on Tuesday make a virtual appearance in the Bloemfontein magistrate’s court alongside seven co-accused.
Bester, his accomplice Dr Nandipha Magudumana and a Mozambican national were apprehended in Tanzania while trying to cross the border into Kenya in April following his escape from the Mangaung Correctional Centre in May 2022.
A delegation from the Department of Justice and Correctional Services and the police travelled to Tanzania to facilitate the trio’s return to the country. Known as the Facebook rapist, Bester walked out of prison after he faked his death.
During the group’s court appearance last week, investigating officer Tieho Flyman made shocking revelations about the escape.
According to Flyman’s testimony, Bester escaped wearing a G4S uniform, implicating Senohe Matsoara, a former G4S employee, as the mastermind behind the jail break.
Flyman also revealed that Zolani Sekeleni, the father of Magudumana, hired a car which was later handed over to Matsoara.
Matsoara then drove the vehicle to the prison allegedly with the deceased body of Katlego Bereng, which was later found burnt beyond recognition in Bester’s cell.
The court heard that Matsoara, who was suspected of having paid several G4S employees to facilitate the escape, received at least R150 000 from an individual identified as TK.
Flyman verified that Matsoara had offered a payment of at least R2.5-million to Teboho Lipholo, an Integritron Integrated Solutions technician who was contracted by G4S, and other individuals involved in order to guarantee a successful escape.
However, Lipholo only received R40 000, with R30 000 being deposited into his wife’s bank account prior to the escape. The remaining R10 000 was paid to him after the escape.
Flyman said: “Our investigation confirms that Matsoara facilitated the payment to ensure Thabo Bester’s escape and that regular payments of R20 000, R25 000, and R50 000 amounting to at least R150 000 went from TK’s account to his.
“He subsequently paid accused number two [Lipholo] at least R30 000, from some of the monies deposited by TK.”
On the day of the fire incident in Bester’s cell, Matsoara, who usually did not work night shifts as a supervisor, requested a shift swap with one of his colleagues.
Flyman stated that Matsoara instructed an official from the Broadway section of the prison to attend to an inmate complaining of shortness of breath, disregarding the fact that Broadway was not to be left unattended.
Despite the official’s explanation, Matsoara’s position as supervisor gave him the authority, resulting in an alarm being raised about a fire in Bester’s cell.
“Matsoara as the supervisor did not work the evening shift. He requested a swap with one of his colleagues. This is the same morning that the fire broke out in Thabo Bester’s cell 35.
“He then instructed an official working at the Broadway section to attend to an inmate that complained of shortness of breath.
“The official tried to explain that Broadway could not be left unattended but he gave an instruction as the supervisor. This is when there was an alarm that there was a fire in Thabo Bester’s cell,” Flyman said.
He added that once the corpse (Bereng’s body) was in place, Bester was provided with a G4S uniform and freely walked out of prison.
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