ONE could say the notorious Thabo Bester is serving as an inspiration to so many outlaws behind bars, it being behind police vans, in police holding cells and convicted ones in prison.
Bester has set the bar high in bringing hope to thugs that one can still escape to see the light.
His act can be paired with that of one of the deceased, serial rapist‚ robber and murderer, Ananias Mathe, who was famously reported to have rubbed a petroleum jelly all over his body to slip away from a highly secured C-Max Penitentiary prison in Pretoria in 2006. But who still believes that crap we were fed?
Now, the inspired are actually escaping. In October, there were successful escapes by the arrested thugs and convicted ones.
In three days, three escapes from around the county were reported, and in the North West, eight awaiting trial prisoners escaped from the Mogwase Magistrates holding cells on Tuesday, 10 October.
Since then, only two have been rearrested. In Limpopo, a 31-year-old male suspect, Thapelo Sebola, also escaped lawful custody. He allegedly ran from a police van and fled into the bushes.
He was facing serious charges of murder and attempted murder.
Thirdly, in Cape Town, six inmates escaped from the Athlone Magistrates Court in Cape Town on Wednesday, 11 October. Cops said the escapees were between the ages of 20 and 33 and were also dangerous as they were facing charges of murder, attempted murder, assault and aggravated robberies, as well as the possession of stolen property.
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Well, according to the SAPS’ annual report, 568 people escaped from police custody in 406 incidents during the 2021/22 financial year.
That’s a lot of escapes. As much as all government departments are deemed corrupt, the Mzansi security cluster can’t be spared from such.
Are aboVader and Popos underpaid? Is it greed from their side to make extra cash, or are those instructions coming from those in power above? Whatever it is, we can all agree that money is involved in most of these escapes.
The less said about the escape out of the country by Bushiri and his wife, the better, not mentioning the silent departure of the Gupta brothers before they could be arrested. Well, again, to so many, it's still puzzling a bit and a shady tale of the death of Bosasa CEO Gavin Watson, who was reported dead in a car crash near the OR Tambo International Airport in Joburg on 26 August 2019.
All in all, is the Mzansi security system of police and prison warders that weak or is the jail-free ticket that cheap? You decide!
