Chris Theko
Rethabile ‘Dj Rochesta†Lekometsa has spent two months in a South African prison after he was arrested in Klerksdorp by the South African Police Services (SAPS).
The Skupu hit maker was arrested on the third day of June in the North West Province. It is alleged that the DJ and producer was supposed to meet up with someone on the day but the person was not answering his phone hence he had then resorted to asking for directions at a nearby car dealership.
While he was asking the security guards for help, they thought he was some thug disguising as a lost person and called the police who allegedly came and started beating him up without asking questions.
The family reported him missing at first as they could not reach him on his phone, but later discovered that he had been arrested. The brother Likopo Libe said the family is still oblivious to what really transpired on the day Rochester was arrested.
“This was the day The South African government reintroduced the 9 pm curfew, all we know is that he asked for directions to a police station when he realized that it was getting late while he was struggling to find the place he was going to and my suspicion is the people he asked for directions from failed to help him probably out of malice.
“So how he was arrested is still a mystery to us because he was just lost from what we have gathered. At first we were worried thinking something bad had happened to him because we were struggling to reach him and when we finally did reach could not get all the details of what had happened,†Libe said.
This publication can however reveal that the Dj was arrested with no charge only to be charged days later having been brutally beaten up by the arresting officers who did not read him his rights before throwing him into the van and subsequently into the holding cell.
A source close to the incident said the Dj was trying to flee when he realized that the police were not going to stop beating him up without giving him a chance to explain himself and shortly after getting in his car to drive off one of the officers tried to stop him and the car was dragging him through the door which angered the police officers.
The officers chased him with their cars until they arrested him.
Rochester suffered a number of bruises and was denied medical attention but was later charged with attempted murder for dragging the police officer with his car and for being in South Africa illegally.
The Dj’s vehicle disc had expired and also had a lingering spot fine of R2000 which he had to pay and this publication can also reveal that Rochester had not stamped his passport when he crossed at the Moseru border post. But he is not charged with any of these since his arrest for over two months.
The South African law states that a detainee may be held without charge, in a police custody for no more than 48 hours, after which time they must be charged and brought before a magistrate and either released on bail or transported to a prison to await trial.
However, in the case of Dj Rochester, none of that happened since he is also yet to see his day in court and face trial.
According to his brother, Dj Rochester had gone to South Africa as part of his plans to pursue working collaborations in South Africa “which is something he had been trying to do for some time but was struggling due to lack of finances and this was the one time he had to go make things happenâ€.
