Cop crashes impounded vehicle

The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights has filed a notice of intention to sue Home Affairs minister Ignatius Chombo over a traffic police officer, who impounded a vehicle and later got involved in an accident with the alleged offender's car.

It is alleged that Simba Chikaka, who was travelling along Rusape-Nyazura Road on November 1, 2015, was ordered to stop at a roadblock by Constable Titus Matava from Rusape Police Station.

According to the notice of intention to sue in terms of the State Liabilities Act, Chikaka was advised that he had committed a traffic offence of not being in possession of temporary vehicle registration plates for his vehicle he had recently imported.
"He was ordered to pay a spot fine of $20, which he did not have, and was advised that the vehicle had been impounded," the notice reads.

"Matava took the car keys from our client (Chikaka) and ordered him to sit on the passenger seat and then advised him that he was going to use our client's vehicle as a chase vehicle to follow up other vehicles he had impounded. Matava negligently drove our client's vehicle, he veered off the road and was involved in an accident and hit a tree."

The notice claims the vehicle was extensively damaged and Chikaka sustained head, neck and hip injuries.

He was medically examined and an accident report was compiled by the Vehicle Inspection Department.

"In the premise, we hold strict instructions to demand from you vicariously liable as we hereby do a total of $6 260 as failure to take action in this regard will leave us with no option, but to issue summons against you," the lawyers said.

Matava is cited as the first defendant, while Chombo and Commissioner-General of Police Augustine Chihuri are cited as second and third defendants respectively.

However, in the defendant's plea under case number 611/2016, they admit liability, but do not agree to the quantum of damages claimed by Chikaka.

"The plaintiff failed to pay deposit fine and misled the defendants that he had no driver's licence, he was advised that he could not continue to drive while being unlicensed. His vehicle was subsequently impounded and he was ordered to hand over the vehicle keys to the police,'' the plea reads.

According to the plea, Matava, who is a licenced driver, failed to pay due care and attention as he drove the vehicle before being involved in an accident.

"The plaintiff sustained minor injuries of which he was treated and discharged on the same day and the first defendant paid the costs of all the medical expenses, the defendant never acted on a frolic of his own, but the accident occurred when he was lawfully executing his duties after the plaintiff indicated that he had no driver's licence," the police said.