Zachariah Moyana, 32, pleaded guilty to contravening the
Parks and Wildlife Act, which prohibits the “unlawful removal of any animal
from any land,” when he appeared before Harare magistrate Tafadzwa Miti.
Asked by magistrate Miti how he started fostering the
monkey, Moyana said he “adopted” it when its mother was attacked and killed by
villagers in Chipinge.
“The baby monkey’s mother was killed by villagers and
that’s how I started taking care of it.
“I was feeding it with bananas and sadza, and on the day I
was arrested, I was taking it to National Parks,” he said.
Moyana was further quizzed about how he had managed to
travel with the monkey from Chipinge.
He said people were friendly to the monkey, so he didn’t
encounter any challenges.
He told the court Parks officers had a tough time,
separating the monkey from him, when he was arrested.
The court heard that on August 28, detectives from CID
Minerals, Flora and Fauna Unit, Harare, received information that Moyana had a
monkey at Africa Unity Square.
Detectives found Moyana sitting on a bench, with the
monkey, on his green camouflage satchel.
The detectives asked Moyana to produce a permit, or
licence, from the Parks and Wildlife Management, authorising him to possess the
monkey.
He failed and was arrested.
The monkey is valued at about US$500.
Thomas Chanakira appeared for the State. H Metro
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