FOUR Bulawayo
City Council (BCC) municipal police officers were caught on camera brutally
assaulting a vendor in the city centre for allegedly refusing to pay daily
remittances to the council.
Dinginkosi
Sibanda (39) of Nkulumane 12, Bekithemba Sibanda (43) of Old Pumula, Sylvia
Mwapaureni (44) of Entumbane and Mduduzi Ncube (36) of New Luveve allegedly
ganged up and assaulted Mr Emmanuel Ngome (27) and Mr Zivanai Simudzamoyo (25)
and verbally abused them using words with tribal connotations.
The quartet was
recorded by one of the complainants while in the process of attacking his
colleague as they demanded payment from the two vendors.
Dinginkosi,
Bekithemba, Mwapaureni and Ncube appeared before Bulawayo magistrate, Mr
Shepherd Mjanja facing two counts of assault. They were remanded out of custody
to August 4 on free bail.
Prosecuting, Mr
Terrence Chakanyuka said on June 24 at around 11.30am, the complainants were
standing at corner George Silundika Street and 5th Avenue in the CBD when
Dinginkosi who was on duty confronted them and demanded remittances for the day
for their selling wares at council designated vending bays
“When one of
the complainants, Mr Ngome refused to pay, Dinginkosi held him by the throat
and threatened to arrest him as he ordered him to surrender his wares,” he
said.
The court heard
that Dinginkosi took the complainants to their offices where he met his
co-accused persons.
They allegedly
ganged up and handcuffed the complainants and Dinginkosi choked Mr Ngome while
Bekithemba, Mwapaureni and Ncube allegedly kicked him. They pushed him down
before Mwapaureni stepped on his neck as he lay helplessly on the ground. “The
accused persons turned on Mr Simudzamoyo and verbally assaulted him using
abusive and offensive words with tribal connotations and handcuffed him before
assaulting him,” said Mr Chakanyuka.
Mr Simudzamoyo
managed to capture the accused persons on video using his phone as they
assaulted his colleague.
Upon noticing
that they were being recorded, the accused persons turned the heat on him and
kicked him on the stomach as they demanded him to delete the video. The
complainant managed to escape and went to Bulawayo Central Police Station where
he made a report leading to the arrest of the four accused persons.
The
complainants were taken to hospital where they were treated and discharged.
The accused
persons are being represented by lawyers from Coghlan and Welsh Legal
Practitioners. Chronicle
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