A ZIMBABWEAN man arrested for overstaying in Botswana and
lying that he was a Southern African Development Community (Sadc) intelligence
official deployed to that country, was last week slapped with a two-year jail
term.
Last week, Philimon Sithole appeared before a village chief
magistrate, Batho Kgerethwa, who convicted and sentenced him to two years in
jail for producing a false document and claiming to be a diplomat.
Botswana’s Voice newspaper reports that Sithole pleaded
guilty to the two charges.
Charges against Sithole were that he stayed in Botswana
between December 5, 2018 and April 24, 2020, exceeding the 90 days he had been
given by the immigration officers.
The court also heard that Sithole, on April 24, 2020 near
Gaborone West Police Station, lied to local police that he worked for Sadc as
an intelligence officer and political analyst.
When further asked to produce other documents to prove that
he was a diplomat, Sithole gave them a diplomat card for Sadc issued in 2019
and expiring in 2030.
It was the State case that on the same day, Sithole
produced a forged residence permit to police. The detective then called Sadc,
which denied having an employee by the name Sithole.
The police recovered a gun during a further search in
Sithole’s car.
The investigating officer told the court that Sithole also
misrepresented that he was a director at Current Logistics Company and
implicated one Edmore Murufu for producing his fake documents. Newsday
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