A WELL known Sakubva bouncer – Simon Korera – wept
uncontrollably at the Mutare Magistrates’ Courts on Monday morning after he was
jailed, together with his wife, Loran Chasaya, for stealing a beast which they
gave to another complainant who was pressing stock theft charges against them.
The couple was slapped with varying jail sentences by
magistrate Mr Tendai Mahwe after a full trial.
There was drama in Court B as Korera broke down into tears
soon after Mr Mahwe read the sentence.
Defence lawyer, Mr Victor Chinzamba of Mugadza, Chinzamba
and Partners Legal Practitioners, had a torrid moment to calm down his client
who cried bitterly from the court room up to the holding cells.
Korera (39) was slapped with a five year jail term with one
year set aside on condition of good behaviour while his wife was sentenced to
24 months behind bars.
Mr Mahwe suspended 12 months on usual terms while the
remaining 12 months were also set aside on condition that she perform 420 hours
of community service at Sakubva Police Station.
Chasaya (36) was given a lighter sentence because the court
found out that she was influenced by her husband to partake in the crime.
The couple was facing stock theft charges as defined in
Section 114 (2)(a) of the Criminal Law
Codification and Reform Act Chapter 9:23.
District public prosecutor Mr Tirivanhu Mutyasira told the
court that the crime was committed in May 2017.
“On May 1, 2017 Korera appeared in court at the Nyanga
Magistrates’ Court on allegations of having stolen an ox belonging to Blessing
Gwandingwa.
“On the first remand date, Korera offered Gwandingwa $300
as compensation for the stolen beast, but Gwandingwa did not accept the money
as he needed a beast.
“Two days after his next remand date, Korera and his wife
brought a black heifer and handed it over to the complainant and the
transaction was witnessed by Tinashe Sarupinda.
“Consequently, allegations against Korera were withdrawn
and the prosecution was declined on the basis of compensation made by Korera
and a withdrawal affidavit allegedly from the complainant,” said Mr Mutyasira.
An acknowledgement of receipt of the heifer by Gwandigwa
from Korera was drafted in which Chasaya and Sarupinda appended their
signatures as witnesses.
“Acting on information received following a public outcry
that Gwandigwa had received a stolen beast, the police investigated the
matter,” he said.
The investigations unearthed that the beast had been bought
in unclear circumstances. All the papers which Korera presented to confirm that
he properly bought the beast were forged and the seller of the beast could not
be located.
“Korera compensated Gwandingwa with a heifer which had a
doubtful origin as the documents were fake,” said Mr Mutyasira.
Last year violence almost broke out the Mutasa Magistrates’
Court as irate villagers bayed for Korera’s blood.
He was facing eight counts of stocktheft from communal
farmers.
More than 75 complainants are alleging then that Korera
stole their cattle since 2016.
Allegations were that he stole the cattle belonging to the
complainants at grazing pastures and slaughtered them in the bush.
After slaughtering the beasts, Korera allegedly took some
cuts he preferred and left the remainder of the carcasses at the scene of the
crime. Manica Post
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