News / National
Man cuts telecom cables, jailed 10 years
09 Jul 2018 at 08:01hrs | Views
A 50-YEAR-OLD homeless man last Friday landed himself a 10-year jail term for cutting telecommunication cables in Harare.
Farai Matondo was convicted and sentenced by Harare magistrate Josephine Sande for contravening section Postal and Telecommunication Act.
Matondo, who was not represented, had denied the offence, claiming the security guard who apprehended him was framing him. He also denied that the exhibit provided in court was not recovered from him.
But the State represented by Delight Mauto successfully convinced the court that Matondo was positively identified by the witness and he was chased more than two times while trying to carry his loot.
Sande then ruled in favour of the State, saying they proved a prima facie case against Matondo.
Matondo will serve the whole term since the offence carries a mandatory jail term.
The court heard that on June 13 this year at around 11pm, Kudakwashe Nyikavaranda employed by Signaccess Security Services was on night duty when he saw Matondo cutting TelOne drop cables and he intercepted him in Eastlea.
Matondo managed to flee, leaving the cables on the ground, but Nyikavaranda left them there.
The court further heard that on the next day at around 5am, Nyikavaranda apprehended Matondo after he returned to pick the cables he had left the previous night.
TelOne forensic services department official Justice Kazhanje positively identified the cables as their property and the recovered cables weighed 10kg worth $400.
Farai Matondo was convicted and sentenced by Harare magistrate Josephine Sande for contravening section Postal and Telecommunication Act.
Matondo, who was not represented, had denied the offence, claiming the security guard who apprehended him was framing him. He also denied that the exhibit provided in court was not recovered from him.
But the State represented by Delight Mauto successfully convinced the court that Matondo was positively identified by the witness and he was chased more than two times while trying to carry his loot.
Sande then ruled in favour of the State, saying they proved a prima facie case against Matondo.
The court heard that on June 13 this year at around 11pm, Kudakwashe Nyikavaranda employed by Signaccess Security Services was on night duty when he saw Matondo cutting TelOne drop cables and he intercepted him in Eastlea.
Matondo managed to flee, leaving the cables on the ground, but Nyikavaranda left them there.
The court further heard that on the next day at around 5am, Nyikavaranda apprehended Matondo after he returned to pick the cables he had left the previous night.
TelOne forensic services department official Justice Kazhanje positively identified the cables as their property and the recovered cables weighed 10kg worth $400.
Source - newsday
