News / Regional
Soldiers fined for assaulting a cop
09 Jun 2014 at 06:23hrs | Views
TWO soldiers who assaulted a police officer for trying to arrest them for smoking mbanje have each been fined $300.
Brodreck Nyahuna, 29, and Organise Makuyana, 24, are both soldiers stationed at 1.3 Infantry Battalion in Plumtree.
The two were found guilty of assaulting Constable Blessed Sande by Plumtree magistrate, Livard Philemon.
He fined the two soldiers $300 each or in default four months in prison.
The two had denied the charges but were convicted due to overwhelming evidence.
The court heard that Nyahuna and Makuyana were smoking mbanje at Dingumuzi Business Centre last Tuesday at about 8pm.
Constable Sande was patrolling the area with three other police officers when they received information that the two were smoking mbanje at Siphosenkosi Bottle Store.
The officers proceeded to the scene and the two soldiers on seeing the officers approaching ran way.
Constable Sande gave chase and caught up with Makuyana. He then tried to handcuff him, but Nyahuna forcibly took the handcuffs from him and the two soldiers started assaulting him.
Prosecuting, Medica Tshuma said three other police officers who had remained in the bottle store came to Constable Sande's rescue and helped arrest the rogue soldiers.
Nyahuna and Makuyana agreed that they were smoking mbanje but denied beating up a police officer.
"We did not beat up the officer but what happened is that they were assaulting my partner, Makuyana. They arrested us and they started harassing us and beating us up but we did not lay a hand on them.
"It is true that they found us smoking mbanje at a bottle store at Dingumuzi Business Centre but the rest is all lies," said Nyahuna.
In passing sentence Plumtree magistrate, Philemon lashed out at Nyahuna and Makuyana for tarnishing the image of defence forces.
Brodreck Nyahuna, 29, and Organise Makuyana, 24, are both soldiers stationed at 1.3 Infantry Battalion in Plumtree.
The two were found guilty of assaulting Constable Blessed Sande by Plumtree magistrate, Livard Philemon.
He fined the two soldiers $300 each or in default four months in prison.
The two had denied the charges but were convicted due to overwhelming evidence.
The court heard that Nyahuna and Makuyana were smoking mbanje at Dingumuzi Business Centre last Tuesday at about 8pm.
Constable Sande was patrolling the area with three other police officers when they received information that the two were smoking mbanje at Siphosenkosi Bottle Store.
The officers proceeded to the scene and the two soldiers on seeing the officers approaching ran way.
Constable Sande gave chase and caught up with Makuyana. He then tried to handcuff him, but Nyahuna forcibly took the handcuffs from him and the two soldiers started assaulting him.
Prosecuting, Medica Tshuma said three other police officers who had remained in the bottle store came to Constable Sande's rescue and helped arrest the rogue soldiers.
Nyahuna and Makuyana agreed that they were smoking mbanje but denied beating up a police officer.
"We did not beat up the officer but what happened is that they were assaulting my partner, Makuyana. They arrested us and they started harassing us and beating us up but we did not lay a hand on them.
"It is true that they found us smoking mbanje at a bottle store at Dingumuzi Business Centre but the rest is all lies," said Nyahuna.
In passing sentence Plumtree magistrate, Philemon lashed out at Nyahuna and Makuyana for tarnishing the image of defence forces.
Source - chronicle
