News / National
Prostitute sells out robber
08 Sep 2014 at 10:49hrs | Views
A GUN-WIELDING Harare man who terrorised Victoria Falls residents last Thursday shocked the Hwange Magistrates Court when he claimed he had committed the robberies to raise money for bus fare to return to the capital.
Emmanuel Chiringo (28) of Zimre Park in Harare lost his charm, which had earned him more than $3 000, when he decided to share his spoils with a prostitute, who later sold him out while attempting to flee the resort town.
"Your honour, I was looking for money after going to Victoria Falls to look for work without enough money to return to Harare. I just wanted some money to survive," Chiringo told a stunned court audience.
He pleaded guilty when he appeared before Western Region regional magistrate Dambudzo Malunga, facing two counts of unlawful entry, theft and robbery.
Malunga sentenced Chiringo to an effective seven years behind bars.
Prosecutor Tawanda Sigauke told the court how on November 7 2013 at around 6:30pm, Victoria Falls Deputy Sheriff Kudakwashe Chigoma secured his house by locking all the doors and fastened his windows before leaving for church.
Later that night, Chiringo went to the house where he smashed the bedroom window and then cut the window gauze with scissors to gain entry.
He ransacked the house and stole various items that included clothing, electrical gadgets and furniture. He packed the stolen clothes into two bags which he later forgot and left outside the house.
While ransacking the house, Chiringo found a set of keys in one of the jackets in the wardrobe and used them to open a gun cabinet from where he took a star pistol with 17 rounds of ammunition.
He broke into Lulu Rumbidzai Mukombero's house next and ransacked all the rooms, stealing three cellphones.
Chiringo later met Mbongeni Sibanda and Sikhanyisiwe Ncube walking home at around 2:30am.
He pulled the stolen pistol and pointed it at Sibanda's head before ordering the two to empty their pockets. He took $26 and disappeared.
He later went to Chinotimba Night Club where he met sex worker Martha Matshazi, whom he propositioned.
"After a few drinks, we decided to go to my residence where we had sex and he paid me $10 for the service. I suddenly heard a corking sound and asked him what it was and he told me that it was a gun, and that he worked for the government," Matshazi told the court.
She said in the morning, Chiringo boarded a bus bound for Harare, saying he was going to Zvishavane.
Suspicious of her client, Matshazi informed police on patrol at the bus terminus leading to Chiringo's arrest just as the bus was leaving.
Emmanuel Chiringo (28) of Zimre Park in Harare lost his charm, which had earned him more than $3 000, when he decided to share his spoils with a prostitute, who later sold him out while attempting to flee the resort town.
"Your honour, I was looking for money after going to Victoria Falls to look for work without enough money to return to Harare. I just wanted some money to survive," Chiringo told a stunned court audience.
He pleaded guilty when he appeared before Western Region regional magistrate Dambudzo Malunga, facing two counts of unlawful entry, theft and robbery.
Malunga sentenced Chiringo to an effective seven years behind bars.
Prosecutor Tawanda Sigauke told the court how on November 7 2013 at around 6:30pm, Victoria Falls Deputy Sheriff Kudakwashe Chigoma secured his house by locking all the doors and fastened his windows before leaving for church.
Later that night, Chiringo went to the house where he smashed the bedroom window and then cut the window gauze with scissors to gain entry.
He ransacked the house and stole various items that included clothing, electrical gadgets and furniture. He packed the stolen clothes into two bags which he later forgot and left outside the house.
While ransacking the house, Chiringo found a set of keys in one of the jackets in the wardrobe and used them to open a gun cabinet from where he took a star pistol with 17 rounds of ammunition.
He broke into Lulu Rumbidzai Mukombero's house next and ransacked all the rooms, stealing three cellphones.
Chiringo later met Mbongeni Sibanda and Sikhanyisiwe Ncube walking home at around 2:30am.
He pulled the stolen pistol and pointed it at Sibanda's head before ordering the two to empty their pockets. He took $26 and disappeared.
He later went to Chinotimba Night Club where he met sex worker Martha Matshazi, whom he propositioned.
"After a few drinks, we decided to go to my residence where we had sex and he paid me $10 for the service. I suddenly heard a corking sound and asked him what it was and he told me that it was a gun, and that he worked for the government," Matshazi told the court.
She said in the morning, Chiringo boarded a bus bound for Harare, saying he was going to Zvishavane.
Suspicious of her client, Matshazi informed police on patrol at the bus terminus leading to Chiringo's arrest just as the bus was leaving.
Source - newsday
