A Botswana national, Lesedi Molapisi, has been released from prison in Bangladesh, where she had been held on death row for drug smuggling.
In a statement issued on 1 September 2026, the Government of Botswana said that Molapisi was released after more than four years in custody.
“The Government of Botswana wishes to inform the public that Ms Lesedi Molapisi has been released from the Bangladeshi prison where she was held following her sentencing to death on 27th May 2024, by the courts in Bangladesh,” reads the statement.
“Ms Molapisi was arrested on 23rd January 2022 in Dhaka, Bangladesh after being found in possession of narcotics and subsequently convicted of a drug smuggling offence.”
Molapisi was detained at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on 23 January 2022.
According to reports at the time, customs officials intercepted her after she arrived on a flight from South Africa via Doha, Qatar, following an anonymous tip-off. She was found in possession of 3.145 kilograms of heroin.
On 27 May 2024, a Dhaka court convicted her of drug smuggling and sentenced her to death.
Under Bangladesh’s Narcotics Control Act, enacted in 1990 and amended in 2018, possession of more than 25 grams of heroin can attract the death penalty or life imprisonment.
Her case attracted widespread attention in Botswana because of the severity of the sentence and the prospect of a Botswana citizen being executed abroad.
In March 2025, unverified reports circulated on social media claiming she had already been executed. The claims were found to be false, with her family confirming she was still alive.
The Botswana Government said her release follows “concerted efforts undertaken by the Government of Botswana advocating for her release, including an appeal by President Advocate Duma Gideon Boko for executive clemency and commutation of Ms Molapisi’s death sentence.”
Under Bangladeshi law, a death sentence can be commuted by the government under Sections 401 and 402 of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898 and under Article 49 of the Constitution.
According to the statement, at the instruction of President Boko, the Ministry of International Relations was “actively seized with Ms Molapisi’s case through diplomatic channels.”
The Minister of International Relations, Honourable Phenyo Butale, engaged with the former Interim Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Mohammed Yunus, and the current Minister of Foreign Affairs, Khalilur Rahman, on Molapisi’s release.
Botswana’s diplomatic missions in South Africa and India were also engaged with the Bangladeshi authorities, including “facilitating consular assistance and support for Ms Molapisi.”
The government further said it worked with various local and international human rights organisations, including Ditshwanelo — The Botswana Centre for Human Rights — to ensure Molapisi received relevant legal representation.
Ditshwanelo had been part of a coalition of seven international rights groups, including Amnesty International, ADPAN and the International Federation for Human Rights, which in June 2024 issued a joint statement expressing concern over the conviction and calling for Bangladesh to commute the sentence.
“The Government hereby expresses its deep appreciation to the Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh for granting Ms Molapisi clemency,” the statement said.
“This development is a testament to the strong bonds of cooperation between the two countries, strengthened by the shared values of mutual respect that benefit both nations and their peoples.”
The government did not provide details of when Molapisi is expected to return to Botswana or the conditions attached to her release.
