Published by the government of Zimbabwe
6 July 2009
Harare — A PRISON officer who extorted a cellphone from a suspect at a court and hid it in his under garments has been slapped with an effective 16-month prison term.
Kwaipa Mugadza (32) of Harare Central Prison committed the offence while he was deployed at the city's magistrates' court on May 13.
Harare magistrate Mr Archie Wochiunga initially sentenced Mugadza to 24 months in prison before he conditionally suspended eight months.
Mugadza, who denied the allegations at the opening of the hearing, was convicted on overwhelming evidence after a full trial.
After sentencing, Mugadza successfully applied for bail pending appeal against both conviction and sentence. He was released on US$50 bail. Prosecutor Mr Andrew Mudheredhe established that on May 13 this year, Mugadza met Mr Brian Makwindi at the court where he was an accused in a Copyright Act case. A magistrate in Court 5, where Mr Makwindi was appearing, granted him free bail but Mugadza later approached Mr Makwindi claiming to have facilitated his release. He demanded US$50 from Mr Makwindi as a bribe for the facilitation of his release on bail.
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