A KADOMA man, who was slapped with a 10-year prison sentence for robbing a Delta Beverages truck driver of $1 100, is applying for bail at the High Court.
by GIFT NJIRISI
The convict, Paul Mamvura (25), pleaded guilty when he appeared in court facing armed robbery charges and was slapped with a 12-year prison sentence.
Mamvura will serve an effective 10 years after two years were suspended on condition that the does not commit a similar offence by Chinhoyi magistrate Never Katiyo, who described the crime as a ‘very serious offence’.
The circumstances of the matter are that on September 3, 2013 around 8pm, Delta Beverages truck driver, Perfect Zulu (40) was delivering beer at Hove business centre and while there, he had $1 100 he had received from sales.
According to court papers, Mamvura then approached Zulu with a pistol and demanded the cash, which Zulu handed over, fearing for his life.
Court papers say that Mamvura then disappeared with the loot and Zulu made a report to the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP).
Investigations by the ZRP led to Mamvura’s arrest, and he helped the police recover the pistol he used and $480, which he had given to a friend.
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In passing the sentence, Katiyo highlighted that the country was currently at a stage where the youth were being called to be productive elements in the economy, not to commit crimes.
“Zimbabwe, at this stage, is calling for young persons like the accused (Mamvura) to spend most of their energy in putting the economy forward rather than resorting to criminal offences,” he said.
In his bail application, Mamvura claims that he was forced to plead guilty and was also assaulted by the police officers, who were investigating his case.
“The appellant (Mamvura) was not legally represented. He was heavily assaulted and forced to plead guilty at the court by the police,” he said.
“The police officers involved were in court at the hearing. Appellant was afraid of further assaults if he was to deny the allegations and, hence, the plea was not voluntarily made.”
