Tuesday 5 April 2022

FIRM SHARES FIGHT ENDS IN HORSE INJURY

BUSINESSMAN Yit Barek Tekie yesterday denied charges of hitting and injuring another businessman’s horse with his car on the streets of Harare’s affluent suburb of Borrowdale, saying the allegations were aimed at “fixing” him.

Tekie told the court that the allegations stemmed from the bad blood between him and Mr John Taylor that started from a commercial transaction wherein he bought all the shareholding held by Mr Taylor in a company called FeedMix (Pvt) Limited.

Taylor was a director at FeedMix.

Tekie is appearing at the Harare Magistrates Court charged with cruelty against animals. Through his lawyer, Mr Oscar Gasva, Tekie told the court that the horse, which was allegedly injured during the altercation, was calm and stead, and showed no signs of infuriation or being terrified on the day in question.

“The complainant and the accused have a bad relationship background which emanated from a commercial transaction wherein the accused purchased all of the shareholding held by the complainant in a company called FeedMix,” said Mr Gasva.

“The dispute concerning FeedMix shareholding is currently at arbitral award stage wherein the complainant breached the agreement between him and the accused person. Thus, these present allegations are fabricated and meant to fix the accused person.

“The accused person has also been a complainant in two criminal cases against the complainant, which involved fraud and conspiracy to commit murder.”

Tekie denied hooting, driving his car circling Mr Taylor and his horse, injuring it in the process.

He said the alleged veterinary report was as a result of fabrication.

“The horse was inspected by the officer-in-charge of Borrowdale Police Station on the day in question and it did not have the alleged injury,” he said.

The lawyer said Tekie was well-versed with horse handling, as he is a horse-rider with 30 years experience.

“The accused person has an in-depth knowledge with horses, as he is and experienced horse rider and been a Polo player for more than 30 years,” he said.

Tekie told the court that Mr Taylor hurt his horse on his own as he was fleeing from the house of a witness, Ms Vanessa Evershed, in the arbitration case where he had committed an offence.

He said Ms Evershed stays 12km from Mr Taylor’s place.

“The complainant is the one who was fleeing from a scene of crime where he had committed a conduct which was criminal nuisance in nature at the house of one Vanessa Evershed, which is 12km away from the complainant’s place of residence.

“Vanessa Evershed was a witness in the commercial transaction of the sale of shares of FeedMix dispute, who testified unfavourably against the complainant,” he said.

Tekie said Mr Taylor was charged with criminal nuisance and the matter is pending at the Harare Magistrates Court.

The State led by Mr Thomas Chanakira and Miss Sithembiso Moyo applied to tender a picture showing the wound sustained by the horse on its leg through Mr Taylor, a State witness, as an exhibit.

Mr Gasva objected to tendering of the picture saying it was not showing whether it was a horse or a leg of another animal.

He also doubted the authenticity of the picture, questioning its production and origin.

Harare magistrate Mrs Barbra Mateko asked the State to produce certified copies of the pictures for them to be admitted into the record as exhibit.

It was when Mr Taylor indicated that he deleted the picture from his phone, which he said was used to take the photograph.

Ms Moyo then applied for the matter to be postponed to April 11 to allow the State to retrieve the deleted picture from Mr Taylor’s phone. Herald

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