Africa-Press – Botswana. Two former executive employees of the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DW&NP) were this week arrested and questioned by the Directorate of Intelligence and Security (DIS) in connection with a six-year-long missing AgustaWestland helicopter.
The helicopter has an estimated value of P119,372,000.
Former DW&NP chief pilot, Les Trotter and procurement manager, Major Mothibedi were arrested this week in South Africa (SA) and Botswana respectively after the DIS made a major breakthrough in the recovery of the stripped remnants of the state’s AgustaWestland helicopter in neighbouring SA. A DIS engineer, Johnson Selerio, was also arrested for questioning this week.
The DIS’s initial investigations allegedly associated Trotter, Mothibedi and many others with the appalling sighting this week. Both Trotter and Mothibedi were exited from public employ.
Insiders have intimated that the missing AgustaWestland helicopter was part of the quartet procured in 2016 for the DW&NP, which just disappeared without a trace the same year. Our sources allege that the helicopter was flown, grounded and then met its fate across the border.
This was during the tenure of Tshekedi Khama, younger brother to former president Ian Khama, as the Minister of Environment, Natural Resources, Conservation and Tourism. Both Ian and Tshekedi are currently in self-imposed ‘exile’ in South Africa following the demand for the alleged ‘weapons of war’ by the DIS from the duo after a search and alleged discovery of the disputed ownership of some weapons.
The helicopter parts were allegedly stripped after the suspects in the matter realised that the DIS was closing in on them with their investigations. The DIS’s pursuit of the matter eventually led them straight to the helicopter remnants in SA. Even though most of the parts had been stripped and allegedly sold, the DIS is said to have found some of the parts, which were reportedly verified as belonging to the missing helicopter.
It is said that the inventory at the DW&NP showed that the helicopter existed only in paper whilst physically it was missing. DIS agents managed to intercept the suspects just before they stripped and sold all the parts of the helicopter. It is also alleged that the intention was to leave no trace and make the helicopter vanish ‘into thin air’.
Who is Trotter?
Trotter is a South African citizen who was headhunted by the ministry as the head of aviation and his dubious employment even raised eyebrows at the parliamentary oversight body, the Public Accounts Committee in 2017. Trotter had also worked for a private local flying company, Kalahari Air Services. He was employed as a director at a salary scale of E1. His duties were to plan and coordinate all air support operations and maintenance services in the DW&NP.
Who is Mothibedi?
Mothibedi is a former BDF officer who was recruited into the ministry during Tshekedi’s tenure. He was reportedly fired from the public service after Tshekedi left the ministry. He was head of procurement at the ministry.
Who is Selerio?
Selerio is an engineer in the employ of the spy agency, DIS.
Contacted for comment, the Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources, Conservation and Tourism spokesperson Lesego Kgomanyane said, “Please note that we are unable to comment on the aforesaid as investigation are still ongoing. For further enquiries on the matter kindly contact DIS Public Relations Office.”
Asked to confirm the incident, DIS spokesperson Edward Robert told Mmegi that the directorate could not give details on the ongoing investigations. “I can, however, confirm that this morning we called in some former and current government employees to assist us regarding some investigations we are undertaking. The investigations are on matters that border on national security,” he added.
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