Thomas Thabane

Thabane (middle) with Barack and Michelle Obama days before he fled to South Africa. White House, Aug. 5, 2014. (Official White House Photo by Amanda Lucidon)

Ex-Lesotho prime minister Thomas Thabane charged with wife’s murder

The former prime minister of Lesotho Thomas Thabane was charged with the brutal 2017 murder of his estranged wife Lipolela on Tuesday.

Thomas Thabane

Thabane (middle) with Barack and Michelle Obama days before he fled to South Africa. White House, Aug. 5, 2014. (Official White House Photo by Amanda Lucidon)

The former Prime Minister of Lesotho Thomas Thabane was charged with the brutal 2017 murder of his estranged wife Lipolelo Thabane in a boardroom in the High Court of Lesotho on Tuesday, 30 November.

THOMAS THABANE AND WIFE CHARGED

 According to Reuters, Lipolela Thabane was shot and killed in her car near her home in Maseru mere days before Thomas Thabane was inaugurated in June 2017. The pair had allegedly been embroiled in a messy divorce.

Thabane, 82, was charged with the murder along with his current wife Maesaiah Thabane, 43. The pair deny any involvement in the matter.

The police allege that the former statesman hired eight hitmen to kill his wife but was not present at the shooting itself. It is claimed that the assassins were paid a down payment of $24 000.

Thomas and Maesaiah married each other two months after the shooting. They are charged with unlawfully and intentionally causing the death of Lipolelo Thabane on 14 June 2017. They also face an attempted murder charge related to Thato Sibolla who was with the deceased when she was shot.

Thabane resigned as Prime Minister of Lesotho in May 2020 after mounting pressure from his party All Basotho Convention (ABC) and opposition parties because of the murder charge.

The matter will head to trial in March 2022.

ALSO READ: