9 cops accused of killing suspects

IN a shocking expose, police officers would allegedly fatally assault suspects and in a bid to conceal the act, allegedly shoot at the dead bodies and claim the suspects were killed while trying to flee from custody during indications.

The expose is contained in a court case in which nine police officers, among them senior officers are being indicted in a murder case that happened in 2009.

The nine officers are set to appear in court facing two counts of murder and obstruction of justice after they allegedly killed two armed robbery suspects and tried to conceal their deaths, after allegedly hatching a plan to make it appear as if they had been killed in an attempt to flee from police custody.

Philip Tada, Daniel Nimrod Kwaramba, George Zuze, Onias Mbano, Peter Muchada, Mgcini Sibanda, Mailos Mairos Ncube, President Masukumbe and Albert Zhou are set to appear at the High Court of Zimbabwe in Bulawayo, over the alleged murder of Andrew Jabulani Quinton Sibanda and Temai Bvumbunu in March 2009, while they were in police custody.

Eight witnesses, among them relatives and residents who heard gunshots during the time are expected to present testimonies in the case, when the trial begins.

According to State papers seen by Sunday News, the nine officers were attached to the Criminal Investigations Department in Bulawayo and were handling a case of armed robbery, where the deceased duo had been arrested  over a series of armed robbery cases.

Court records state that the deceased were arrested, after they were raided at their respective places of residence in Njube suburb.

It was stated that after they were taken into custody, they were interrogated and allegedly assaulted by the officers using batons, sjambocks and open hands.

In an attempt to conceal the fatal assault the officers are reported to have then hatched a plan to make it appear as if the two had been shot after trying to escape from police custody.

"They then loaded the bodies of the deceased persons under the cover of darkness into a motor vehicle and drove from the police station to a bushy area in Queens Park. They then offloaded the bodies and laid them on the ground facing downwards and shot them in the back, to look as if the deceased had tried to flee from the place of indications," read part of the State record.

It was further stated that the nine officers took the bodies to United Bulawayo Hospitals, where a post-mortem examination was conducted by one doctor Garcia.

He concluded that the cause of death in relation with Sibanda was caused by hypovolemic shock, bleeding outside, ruptured left kidney and left iliac artery and gunshot wounds by homicide.

With regards to Bvumbunu, Dr Garcia concluded that the cause of death was a result of acute anaemia, ruptured both lungs and left femoral artery, gunshot and homicide.

It was then that a sudden death docket was compiled and an inquest was held by the late magistrate Mr John Masimba.

It was during the inquest when one Detective Sergeant Nyapokoto told the court that the deceased were assaulted and died while in police custody at the station, adding that the escape and shoot was staged to conceal the actual cause of death, records say.

This then led to a full investigation of murder.