Lesedi Molapisi senteced to death for drug smuggling

According to reports, a Botswana national who was arrested at Bangladesh’s largest and main airport, the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) earlier this year with over 3kg of heroin in her luggage was set to be executed on 25 November 2022. Lesedi Molapisi was arrested at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Bangladesh, on a Qatar Airways flight from South Africa, which came via Doha on January 23 2022.

Days before she left South Africa, she shared a post in which she says catch flights not feeling, little did she know that she was catching a flight to her demise.

Unbeknownst to Molapisi, her arrival coincided with an alert that the airport was being used to smuggle narcotics.

Bangladesh authorities said customs officials and National Security Intelligence officers intercepted Molapisi in the “Green Channel”, the passage for arriving passengers with no goods to declare.

Molapisi’s luggage was searched and 3.146kg of heroin was found concealed inside. The Botswana national was immediately arrested.

At the time, Daily Star in Bangladesh quoted Sanuwarul Kabir, Deputy Commissioner of Customs saying: “We have information that cocaine is being smuggled but officials from the Department of Narcotics Control primarily confirmed that the seized item is heroin. We will send the samples for laboratory tests”.

Bangladesh has strict anti-drug laws, which prescribe the death penalty for anyone caught illegally cultivating, producing, transporting, exporting, or importing heroin, cocaine, and cocaine derivatives drugs in excess of 25 grams or millilitres.

Molapisi was tried, found guilty, and sentenced to death.

Although it is yet to be confirmed if the execution of Lesedi Molapisi was done. People in Botswana posted videos of the convicted drug smuggler in happier times dancing and singing along to music at what looks like a club.

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