Focus on Youth: A killer with a conscience
Part 1 of the epic and true local prison stories of crime committed by youth.
The News recently paid a visit to the Krugersdorp Correctional Services to interview some of the inmates, with a special focus on Youth Month.
Two murderers and an armed gang member who robbed numerous homes and people were interviewed, and since all three of them had such unique stories to tell, the News has decided to publish them as a three-part series. These inmates would like to send a special message to today’s youth about the consequences of their actions, especially when committing violent crimes.
Part 1: Thusyaone Letsholo:
What started out as a family irritation ended in a murder. Inmate Thusyaone Letsholo (Thuso), is serving time for stabbing and killing his girlfriend’s cousin at a dinner party years ago. He had learnt that this cousin was beating his (Thuso’s) girlfriend regularly and that she had sustained numerous injuries due to the constant abuse. The irony is that Thuso was not even the type of person who was violent, hot-headed or liked getting into fights.
“I kept quiet for a long time and tried to ignore her pain. One day, I visited the family and after a couple of drinks, I saw him manhandle her. This was the last draw – I drew a knife, and stabbed him. She was finally rid of him. He was dead.”
Also Read: #KrugersdorpMurders: Interesting facts about serial killers Marinda, Leroux and Marcel
The next thing he knew, he was in a jail cell, with hardened criminals, and he was staring into the face of fear and hopelessness.
“When I killed him, I wasn’t even thinking about the rows and rows of policemen, the cold clack of the judge’s gavel or the prison door closing behind me.”
Now, three years into his sentence, Thuso is close to believing that everything in this world is bad because of the things he has seen in prison.
Photo: Bianca Pindral.
“It’s always dangerous; drugs and gangs are always on the lookout for new prey. The temptation to join is always there. And you know if you don’t join, you’ll either die at their hands, or live a very lonely life. But that’s not all that’ll get you killed – you’ll probably die inside yourself before that. The worst for me has been knowing that my two sisters died while I was in prison and I couldn’t even bury them. I might smile, but deep inside I’m not happy.”
Thuso said that all the ‘arrogant’ freedom you have outside is flushed out by whatever happens while inside. He said hardened men get broken down.
“We no longer make decisions for ourselves here; you have to ask someone to open a door when you want to pee, and when there’s no guard to open the gate for you, you keep it in. You ask if you can walk through a doorway, through a gate, and as soon as you are through – clack! it closes right behind you. The older men need to ask young guards for permission to walk through a door or to go urinate. It’s demeaning. You give someone authority over you, just by making decisions without thinking them through. These things break you.”
So how does he stay sane?
Thuso said in prison you learn things about yourself, “about not working through things or talking about what bothers you. I didn’t even know that the beating of my girlfriend had angered me so much until I burst”.
He decided to take action and do something about finding out who he is.
“I’ve learnt to accept what I’ve done and move on. I can’t turn back the hands of time, but I can look back, see what I’ve done and see how I can improve now and in the future.”
He said one of the ways he did this was through developing a love for books.
“I had no direction in life, but books have changed that. Education gave me hope and God gave me a chance. The Bible opened a soft spot inside me and gave me a reason to change. However, I have to struggle with what I’ve done, because Exodus 20 clearly says ‘You shall not kill’. What’s going to happen when I die? That’s what I have to live with.”
He said that he has since studied marketing management and computer science and has acquired a certificate of Hospitality Trainers and Associates (a culinary qualification).
He now holds onto the hope that one day he can advise youngsters not to follow the path he took by telling them his story.
His advice to the youth:
“Focus on books to escape the madness of the circumstances you’re in. Educate yourself, because you make bad decisions when you’re not educated. Information is the map of life. You’ll get lost without it. And always, always be patient. Even if you go into darkness, there’s always a little light. Those around you, the ones you think are bad people for giving you advice or keeping you out of trouble, they’re not punishing you, they’re trying to keep you from ending up in a small cell with very bad people.”
What will he do after prison?
“I hope that when I’m out, I’ll be able to help young people change their minds about what they do. I will open a chess club, not necessarily to focus on the competition, but to have the time to speak to young guys about what is happening in their lives. But mostly, to share my story with them and keep them from ending up here.”
Look out for Part 2 of this trilogy: The drunken murderer.
Do you perhaps have more information pertaining to this story? Email us at krugersdorpnews@caxton.co.za (remember to include your contact details) or phone us on 011 955 1130.
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