'Jealous' man fatally stabbed in bar brawl

A Zimbabwean man based in Botswana lost his life in an altercation with a Motswana man who had mistaken his girlfriend for a prostitute.

Mogami Dijo, told the Gaborone High Court that he did not intend to kill the Zimbabwean, who was not named, as he only wanted to get himself  a 'cheap prostitute'.

"I was told by my friend that if I needed to fix myself sexually, there were plenty of prostitutes at a certain location selling at a cheap price. I proceeded to the place with one thing on my mind," Dijo told Justice Michael Mothobi.

He said he did not anticipate that his outing would lead to him stabbing a man to death.

Dijo testified that in May 2010 he was at a drinking spot in Tlokweng where he met a Zimbabwean woman whom he mistook for a prostitute.

He told court that upon arrival at the place he offered P20 to the woman in exchange for sex. He tried to strike a conversation with the woman but due to language differences he misread her body language.

"As I communicated with her, she backed off and I took it as a sign of agreement even though we hardly understood each other. I grabbed her by the hand and before I knew it I was hit by a man from behind," he said.

Dijo said he immediately backed away from the woman as he realised the man who had hit him was probably her boyfriend.

The enraged man charged at him and provoked him into a fight.

He added that deceased took two beer bottles and broke them to use as weapons.

"I tried to get away from the guy but he would not let me. That's when I grabbed my bag and took out a knife to scare him away.  When he did not barge I stabbed him," said Dijo.

Dijo said he did not intend to stab the deceased and was also not aware of his surroundings at the time, as he was heavily intoxicated from alcohol and dagga.

The state, represented by Lameck Kgosiile has already called all witnesses.

Both the prosecution and defence are expected to make final submissions on September 25, 2014.