News / National
Job Sikhala denied bail
15 Jan 2021 at 11:12hrs | Views
MDC-Alliance's Job Sikhala has been denied bail in a matter where he is accused of spreading falsehoods on social media.
Magistrate Nduna dismissed Sikhala's bail application and said he should wait for the commencement of trial while in prison custody.
He is expected to return to court on 18 February.
The MDC Alliance vice-chairperson was arrested for allegedly commenting on a Facebook video in which a police officer was accused of striking a baby to death with a baton in Harare last week.
The police later issued a statement denying the baby had died as insinuated by the widely circulated video. Sikhala yesterday argued that the Facebook account which the State was basing their allegations on does not belong to him.
The investigating officer in the matter, Davison Ngezi, responded by saying that they would need experts to determine whether Sikhala was the owner of the account or not.
The State opposed his admission to bail.
"The accused is a man of means and can afford to take his family outside the jurisdiction of the court. He is a man of stature in society with connections in and outside the border who can help him flee. He is a lawyer who is bound to abide by the law and he is aware of the consequences of a conviction and this will make him abscond," prosecutors argued.
Magistrate Nduna dismissed Sikhala's bail application and said he should wait for the commencement of trial while in prison custody.
He is expected to return to court on 18 February.
The MDC Alliance vice-chairperson was arrested for allegedly commenting on a Facebook video in which a police officer was accused of striking a baby to death with a baton in Harare last week.
The police later issued a statement denying the baby had died as insinuated by the widely circulated video. Sikhala yesterday argued that the Facebook account which the State was basing their allegations on does not belong to him.
The investigating officer in the matter, Davison Ngezi, responded by saying that they would need experts to determine whether Sikhala was the owner of the account or not.
The State opposed his admission to bail.
"The accused is a man of means and can afford to take his family outside the jurisdiction of the court. He is a man of stature in society with connections in and outside the border who can help him flee. He is a lawyer who is bound to abide by the law and he is aware of the consequences of a conviction and this will make him abscond," prosecutors argued.
Source - online
