News / National
Cops assaulted during shebeen raid
09 Mar 2018 at 06:21hrs | Views
A suspected Bulawayo shebeen operator recently ran amok, biting two police officers deployed to arrest her for operating illegally.
This was heard when Loveness Mutisi (35) appeared before Bulawayo magistrate, Nyaradzo Ringisayi charged with assault and resisting arrest.
Mutisi denied the charge on Tuesday and the magistrate remanded her out of custody to March 19 for continuation of trial.
The court heard that on January 6 at 8pm, police officers Bigboy Benjamin Rambi and Spanias Zhaime both of Ross Camp in Bulawayo raided Mutisi's house at number 24 Charlotte Crescent Sauerstown, Bulawayo, to arrest her for operating a shebeen. When Rambi tried to handcuff her, Mutisi resisted and grabbed him and bit his left breast.
Zhaime also tried to cuff Mutisi, but she resisted and bit his right hand. The two police officers later reported the matter to fellow police officers, leading to the shebeen queen's arrest. They were then referred to a hospital for treatment.
In her defence, Mutisi said she committed the offence while defending herself from an unlawful arrest and unlawful attack by the officers.
"The police told me they wanted to search my place of residence and did not produce any search warrant. When I asked them to produce it, they started assaulting me," she submitted.
Mutisi said they then tried to handcuff her without telling her the crime she had committed and described the act as unlawful since she was not aware why they wanted to arrest her.
She also claimed that she informed them about an injury she had sustained on her arm in an accident, but they ignored that and further inflicted pain on her hand.
Mutisi said the police officers' report was meant to counter the report she filed on the day with the officer in charge Sauerstown Police Station after the assault.
This was heard when Loveness Mutisi (35) appeared before Bulawayo magistrate, Nyaradzo Ringisayi charged with assault and resisting arrest.
Mutisi denied the charge on Tuesday and the magistrate remanded her out of custody to March 19 for continuation of trial.
The court heard that on January 6 at 8pm, police officers Bigboy Benjamin Rambi and Spanias Zhaime both of Ross Camp in Bulawayo raided Mutisi's house at number 24 Charlotte Crescent Sauerstown, Bulawayo, to arrest her for operating a shebeen. When Rambi tried to handcuff her, Mutisi resisted and grabbed him and bit his left breast.
Zhaime also tried to cuff Mutisi, but she resisted and bit his right hand. The two police officers later reported the matter to fellow police officers, leading to the shebeen queen's arrest. They were then referred to a hospital for treatment.
In her defence, Mutisi said she committed the offence while defending herself from an unlawful arrest and unlawful attack by the officers.
"The police told me they wanted to search my place of residence and did not produce any search warrant. When I asked them to produce it, they started assaulting me," she submitted.
Mutisi said they then tried to handcuff her without telling her the crime she had committed and described the act as unlawful since she was not aware why they wanted to arrest her.
She also claimed that she informed them about an injury she had sustained on her arm in an accident, but they ignored that and further inflicted pain on her hand.
Mutisi said the police officers' report was meant to counter the report she filed on the day with the officer in charge Sauerstown Police Station after the assault.
Source - newsday
