The 4 accused persons stand charged of treason as defined in s 20 (1) (b) of the Criminal Law Codification & Reform Act [Chapter 9:23]. They are alleged during the period 1 August 2015 and 22 September 2016 to have conspired to overthrow the Government of Zimbabwe by engaging in conduct preparatory to realizing their goal. More
The accused faces one count of murder and 2 counts of attempted murder as defined respectively in ss 47 and 189 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23]. When the matter was called, the State and defence counsels advised the court that they needed time to draft an agreed statement of facts. The defence counsel had also just hurriedly taken instructions from the accused whom she had failed to access because he had not been transferred from Mutoko prison to Harare. The hearing was postponed to the following day, the 28th February, 2017. The prosecution moved the... More
All three accused pleaded not guilty to a charge of murder involved their brother Oscar Chimbuya (“the deceased”). The undisputed facts are as follows. 1st accused pulled down the tombstones erected by the deceased on their father’s grave. He took the stones and placed them in a dish. He placed this dish with the said tombstones, inside the deceased’s kitchen hut. Upon learning that the 1st accused was behind this abomination, the deceased reported the matter to their village head. The village head then set up a team which included the deceased. This team was to approach the 1st accused... More
What does it mean to say that for purposes of determining intention, a person’s motive is immaterial to criminal liability unless the CODE expressly states otherwise? In my view, this means that where the person whose conduct is in issue intended or meant to engage in the action or produce the result which he did, then it those circumstances, the person may properly be held to have intended to commit the crime, and the actual reasons why the person engaged in such conduct are irrelevant to the element of the crime that requires proof of actual intention. More
The accused was charged with murder in that on the 19th of May 2016, he unlawfully and with intent to kill, or realising that there was a real possibility that death might result, had murdered Batanai Zumbika at Fox night club, Glen View 3 Shopping Centre, Harare. He is said to have stabbed him with a knife on the chest resulting in injuries which caused his death. More
The accused person is facing two counts of murder as defined in s 47 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23]. It is being alleged, in respect of the first count, that on 21 October 2014 at around 2230 hours and at Plot 11 Wells Farm, Wedza, More
The accused was charged with murder of his cousin on Christmas day 2016 on their way from Dotito business centre where they had gone to drink beer. He pleaded not guilty. It is not in dispute that the two had gone drinking on that day. The accused was having an illicit relationship with the deceased’s wife which was indeed still on-going at the time that the deceased met his death. This much is evident from the evidence of the deceased’s wife that was admitted by consent in terms of s 314 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act [Chapter 9:07]. More
