Family members of founder Ombudsman, Lithebe Maine, first found out on twitter Friday that he had allegedly committed suicide.
Within hours after one of the employees at his farm in Seleme saw Maine hanging from the rafters in his room through a slightly drawn curtain, the blogosphere was buzzing with the news. Even before relatives had been informed, Twitter messages about Maine’s death flitted across cyberspace.
A source close to the family told Sunday Standard how a family member picked the news of Maine’s death on Twitter while driving home.
Mochudi Assistant Station Commander, Superintendent Kabelo Bome, said, “I cannot confirm or deny the report that Lethebe Maine has committed suicide but it is an allegation that the gentleman could have committed suicide.”
He explained that the incident happened in the morning but the report reached them around noon, delivered by someone believed to be one of the deceased’s employees at Seleme Farm.
Bome told the Sunday Standard that the scene investigator and the pathologist had been dispatched to conduct investigations at the scene and said because of that, he could not say more.
Younger brother, Leatile Maine, who was at the scene, confirmed Maine’s death.
The younger Maine would not be drawn into discussing details saying police were handling the issue.
One of the several workers at the crime scene explained that they last saw the deceased alive that morning when he came to greet them.
“We were still sorting some tomatoes in the farm and he greeted us before he went back home,” he said, adding that in less than an hour, one of the employees raised concern about Maine’s whereabouts.
He said they then went to look for him at his house on the farm and, through the slightly drawn curtain, saw him hanging from the rafters in his room.
The worker said the deceased had used a rope to commit suicide.
Police left the farm at around 5:30 in the evening, taking the deceased with them to a mortuary.