Lawyers representing two Bulawayo men who were allegedly tortured by police detectives during investigations want the police to be investigated and charged with violating their clients’ rights.
Munyaradzi Nzarayapenga and Nosimilo Chanayiwa yesterday filed a Supreme Court application on behalf of Khumbuzo Gumbo and Sydney Ndachengedzwa.
This was after Gumbo (37) and Ndachengedzwa (23) accused police of unleashing dogs on them during investigations into the theft of $107 774 at Homelink offices in Bulawayo.
The alleged incident occurred on April 30, a day after the suspects’ arrest.
The two are still admitted at the United Bulawayo Hospitals where they are nursing dog bite injuries.
Last Monday, Bulawayo magistrate Sheppard Munjanja remanded the pair to May 17 and ordered a probe into the alleged torture claims.
Gumbo and Ndachengedzwa were granted $500 and $300 bail respectively.
“We are filing an application for the referral of the torture case to the Supreme Court today,” Nzarayapenga said.
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“Pictures of the victims will also be attached to the application as evidence.”
Gumbo and Ndachengedzwa told the court that detectives set dogs on them after taking them from Donnington and Hillside police stations to a bush in Hillside suburb.
Gumbo said the dogs bit him on the right leg, adding his doctor had indicated the leg might be amputated if he did not get urgent medical attention.
Ndachengedzwa said he suffered injuries on the left arm and tendons, paralysing his fingers.
But police claimed they only unleashed the dogs after the suspects “threatened” to flee from custody.
The court heard on April 29, Gumbo and Ndachengedzwa in the company of Phanuel Kafesu and Matewo Mazhale, who are already out of custody on $500 bail, connived to steal money from a Homelink branch in the city.
It is alleged Ndachengedzwa and Kafesu, who are tellers, had access to the keys while Gumbo, a security officer, had access to security systems in the control room.
The tellers allegedly left their cabinets unlocked.
Gumbo allegedly entered the premises and shielded his face from the security camera with his jacket and headed to the control room where he damaged the computer processing video recorder and stole $107 774 from the safes.
