The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe security officers accused of battering former RBZ advisor Munyaradzi Kereke’s personal chauffeur Privilege Maturure will today apply for discharge at the close of the State case after prosecutor Liberty Gono presented all his witnesses in the case, the court heard yesterday.
This was after Marlborough-based police officer Elias Mavhene, one of the police details who arrested the two RBZ security officers, took to the witness stand and denied having warned George Nyahuye and Phillip Dendere that they had “crossed the paths of very important people”.
Instead, Mavhene told provincial magistrate Kudakwashe Jarabini that when Nyahuye and Dendere were arrested at Rock Foundation Medical Centre, they pleaded with the cops saying they were just “henchman”.
Defence lawyer Advocate Linos Mazonde asked Mavhene that it was alleged he had threatened Nyahuye and Dendere that they would pay dearly for crossing the paths of important people and he said:
“That’s a joke. I never mentioned that. Who were the important people? Instead, they pleaded with us saying they were former police officers (and) were just being used.”
Mavhene further told the court that when they got to the scene they witnessed Nyahuye dragging Maturure by the belt while Dendere was out of the medical centre’s premises where the hospital’s guards were struggling to apprehend him.
After the State’s last witness gave evidence, the prosecutor closed the State case and Mazonde hinted he would apply for discharge of his clients today.
The same case has witnessed the arrest and conviction of a bogus medical doctor, a State-registered nurse at Parirenyatwa Hospital, Jacob Chiweshe (35), who was on Monday slapped with a seven-month jail term after divulging that he was influenced to compile a fake medical report by Maturure for a reward.
