Modise Mokwadi Fly is a Botswana politician and activist who was convicted and sentenced to death in 2008 of murdering his two-year-old son.

Fly was the general secretary of the Botswana Congress Party Youth League. On 27 November 2006, Fly killed his son Tawana Mosinyi with an axe while the boy was sleeping. He claimed that he had killed the boy accidentally, while throwing an axe at police outside his window. Fly contended that the police had shot at him.

Fly was convicted of murder by the High Court in Francistown on 17 October 2008. On 21 October, Justice Thomas Masuku sentenced Fly to death by hanging and recommended that Fly appeal to the Court of Appeal of Botswana.

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Warders brutally assault death row inmate?

By Oarabile Mosikare and Khonani Ontebeetse - The Botswana Gazette

24 March 2010

Fly kept in solitary confinement - allegation

Death row inmate Modise Mokwadi Fly is said to have been brutally assaulted by prison officers and is being kept in a solitary confinement following his abortive attempt to escape from the Gaborone Maximum prison late last month.

The Gazette is reliably informed that after Fly escaped from his death row cell and tasted freedom for about 15 minutes, prison wardens severely assaulted him. In order to hide evidence, the source said, Fly has been isolated from fellow death row inmates at the Prison.

This is according to the source that went to visit a relative who also happened to be on death row. The source said she was afraid that Fly might end up being hanged quietly to hide the evidence of his assault.

Ditshwanelo, Centre for Human Rights official, Jonathan Buru confirmed that Ditshwanelo was aware of the allegations.

“As a matter of fact, we made an effort to follow up on the matter once we heard about it. We could not get any response regarding the matter, however, we have been advised to write a detailed letter outlining the issues we are following up on,” he said.

Buru added that, “this we are to do very soon and will get back to you with whatever response we shall get thereafter.”

However, the Department of Prisons and Rehabilitation has refuted the allegations.

The Department of Prisons and Rehabilitation Public Relations Officer, Senior Superintendent Wamorena Ramolefhe, said Fly was not assaulted and denied that he was currently in isolation.

“We are not allowed to assault prisoners. He was never assaulted and was never in isolation,” said Ramolefhe. He said the death row inmate still has his rights and dignity intact. He said if there was interest to visit Fly or any other death row inmate, the interested party must write to the Commissioner of Prisons and the prisoner must give his consent.

Fly, who is a former reggae artist, was convicted and sentenced to death by the then Francistown High Court Judge, Justice Thomas Masuku, for murdering his two-year-old son, Tawana Mosinyi, on November 27, 2006. He was found guilty of hacking Tawana to death with an axe while the boy was sleeping at Somerest location, Francistown. This followed a quarrel with the mother of the child.

Death Penalty Clips Fly's Wings

By Oarabile Mosikare - The Monitor

October 27, 2008

FRANCISTOWN: Drama unfolded at the High Court when the former Botswana Congress Party Youth League (BCPYL) secretary general, Modise Mokwadi Fly, was sentenced to death on Tuesday.

This unprecedented scene happened when Justice Thomas Masuku delivered his ruling on the defence plea of extenuating circumstances. Justice Masuku, compared the circumstances in which Fly killed his two year old son, Tawana Mosinyi, to Kedisaletse Tsobane who also killed his daughter by strangulating her with a wire cable.

Tsobane was recently hanged for the murder of his 10 year old daughter, Macfallen Kgotso after the Court of Appeal confirmed his conviction and sentence.

"Although the circumstances in which the child in Tsobane was killed is different from that in the instant case, I am of the view that the situation was not markedly different, considering the much younger subject in this case, and the large axe which was used to terminate his young life. The very hands he had entrusted his life to were the very ones which destroyed it.

"Countless efforts by the police to at least be given the child were rebuffed by the accused with little ceremony," said Justice Masuku.

Immediately when the stern but sober judge mentioned the two words 'large axe', Fly protested. "My Lord, there is something I wish to say," pleaded the accused. Masuku: "Mr Fly, you are not allowed to say anything you wish to say until I finish my judgment. I will give you that chance".

The condemned Fly obliged and was later given the opportunity to speak. "Accused persons like myself who had never had any brush with the law are prejudiced. What has happened to me will happen to others at the state prison," he said. The dreadlocked Fly said he would accept the sentence rendered by the court. He also took the '15 minutes' of fame to apologise to the Mosinyi family and said he killed his son Tawana by accident.

"I say to the Mosinyi family to forgive me because I killed the child accidentally," he said before waving to the audience defiantly with a smile.

Since the emotional Fly was seemingly enjoying himself, the judge calmly pleaded with him to allow him to finish reading his judgment. Fly obliged.

Justice Masuku advised the ever smiling Fly to raise whatever complaints he had with the Court of Appeal. Before the judgment, all eyes were on Fly. who was all over the court conversing with friends and relatives to the ire of members of Botswana Prisons Service who were supposed to keep an eye on him.

He also took the opportunity to bid farewell to his only sister who was in tears. "You are now alone and only trust God. You must be strong to stand against our relatives who were not there during our time of need. Some of them failed to counter fabricated evidence used against me in this case," said Fly.