Maseru, Aug. 12— None of the recruits, who were identified on the footage by the Officer who led the search team, have admitted assaulting inmates.
The recruits, who are now Correctional Officers denied assaulting inmates when cross examining Chief Officer Tololi Rats’ele before the Commission Of Inquiry on the escape of inmates, after he identified them on the footage which featured the search exercise that was conducted at Maseru Central Correctional Institution (MCCI) on December 22, 2023, which led to assault of inmates, leaving one paralysed.
Some of these recruits claimed that Chief Officer Rats’ele must have confused them with other people while others denied being in certain blocks conducting the search on the above mentioned date.
In addition, other recruits who Rats’ele said he saw assaulting one of the soldier inmates, Mr. Sebilo Sebilo also denied assaulting him.
However Chief Officer Rats’ele insisted he saw some of the recruits who cross examined him assaulting inmates, saying he even retracted the sticks from some recruits who used them to beat inmates.
” I am the one who divided the recruits into two groups and know where the recruits I identified searched ” he stressed.
Meanwhile the recruits who cross examined Chief Officer Rats’ele on Monday morning were about 15 and are expected to testify before the Commission later today.
The Agency has learnt that most of the inmates were assaulted inside prison cells where there are no cameras as the latter only featured what occurred along the passages inside blocks.
