HARARE magistrate Francis Mapfumo yesterday ruled in favour of the defence and ordered the State’s “spy” witness, Claudius Mutizwa, to answer questions on any aspect in the ongoing attempted jailbreak trial of imprisoned cleric Robert Martin Gumbura and eight others.
BY PAIDAMOYO MUZULU
Mutizwa had previously refused to answer some questions during cross-examination, saying he was a spy and as such he could not answer sensitive questions posed to him by the deposed cleric’s lawyer Tapson Dzvetero.
His refusal to respond to questions on who had recruited him and to whom he reported his intelligence on the goings-on in prison prompted Dzvetero to apply to the court seeking to compel Mutizwa to answer the questions.
“The witness cannot run away from answering questions from the issue he introduced. The fact that he introduced it he should be cross-examined,” Mapfumo ruled.
“He should respond on what he said he was an undercover security agent for. He is not a member of the security and therefore should answer.”
In his response, Mutizwa said he was recruited as an informer by officer Moffatt in 2013 and his primary responsibilities were to pass on information about other inmates to the prison officials.
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As the trial progressed, Dzvetero then asked Mutizwa if he had informed prison officials about the impending strike and jailbreak, when President Robert Mugabe was in China, and why the information was not acted on, to which he replied: “I did pass on the information, but I am not aware why they did not act on it. My duty was simply to inform.”
Mutizwa also told the court Gumbura was always in contact with the outside world using a mobile phone belonging to one Chinake, a prison officer, and among the calls he made, was one to Albert Matapo in London (United Kingdom), who was allegedly supposed to help with securing guns and ammunition for the jail-break and toppling of the government.
However, Mutizwa was at pains to explain why the co-conspirators were not in the dock or why the accused were not charged with banditry.
“I passed on the information, but it was up to the police to charge them, I am not aware why they chose not to charge them with banditry or why the co-conspirators were not charged,” Mutizwa said.
Dzvetero then accused Mutizwa of lying since he had not said anything in his witness statement about the banditry activities or the alleged political connections with the outside world, to which Mutizwa said he had made an omission, but remembered the matter because the defence counsel had asked about it.
Earlier the court had also ruled that the State should present its findings on Monday next week on investigations into Mutizwa’s allegations that prison officers were threatening him with death and he now feared for his life for testifying in the case.
Meanwhile, the trial of Transport and Infrastructure Development ministry permanent secretary Munesuishe Munodawafa, on charges of criminal abuse of office after allegedly authorising Air Zimbabwe to offer insurance services to Navistar without going to tender, has been slated for February next year.
