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Bulawayo deputy mayor cleared of bribe allegations
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Bulawayo's Deputy Mayor, Edwin Ndlovu, was acquitted on Wednesday of charges that he demanded a US$20,000 bribe from a company seeking land to build a cement plant, after the magistrate ruled that the State's case had collapsed.
Magistrate Richard Ramaboea noted that the prosecution's key exhibit - a handwritten document allegedly linking Ndlovu to the bribe - was unreliable.
The charges stemmed from allegations that Ndlovu and Ward 3 councillor Mpumelelo Moyo, chair of the Finance and Development Committee, solicited a bribe from Labenmon Investments in exchange for facilitating approval of a 5.6-hectare parcel of land in Cowdray Park.
The State's case relied heavily on the testimony of forensic handwriting expert Kurauone Madziranyika, who claimed that samples from Ndlovu matched the disputed document listing councillors set to benefit from the payout. However, contradictions emerged when Labenmon representative Tsitsi Mapfumo testified that she had authored the first part of the document.
"The only evidence linking the accused to the offence was exhibit number five. Yet the expert concluded the whole document was written by one person. If we accept that, then both the accused and the witness share the same handwriting, which is impossible,c Ramaboea said in his ruling.
The Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) had conducted a sting operation in 2024, leading to the arrest of Ndlovu and Moyo shortly after they allegedly took possession of the money at Mapfumo's house.
With Ndlovu cleared, attention now shifts to Moyo, who is scheduled to present his defence on August 25 through lawyer Prince Butshe Dube. He is expected to explain why he was at the complainant's house and address claims from two witnesses that they saw him with the US$20,000 in cash.
Magistrate Richard Ramaboea noted that the prosecution's key exhibit - a handwritten document allegedly linking Ndlovu to the bribe - was unreliable.
The charges stemmed from allegations that Ndlovu and Ward 3 councillor Mpumelelo Moyo, chair of the Finance and Development Committee, solicited a bribe from Labenmon Investments in exchange for facilitating approval of a 5.6-hectare parcel of land in Cowdray Park.
The State's case relied heavily on the testimony of forensic handwriting expert Kurauone Madziranyika, who claimed that samples from Ndlovu matched the disputed document listing councillors set to benefit from the payout. However, contradictions emerged when Labenmon representative Tsitsi Mapfumo testified that she had authored the first part of the document.
"The only evidence linking the accused to the offence was exhibit number five. Yet the expert concluded the whole document was written by one person. If we accept that, then both the accused and the witness share the same handwriting, which is impossible,c Ramaboea said in his ruling.
The Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) had conducted a sting operation in 2024, leading to the arrest of Ndlovu and Moyo shortly after they allegedly took possession of the money at Mapfumo's house.
With Ndlovu cleared, attention now shifts to Moyo, who is scheduled to present his defence on August 25 through lawyer Prince Butshe Dube. He is expected to explain why he was at the complainant's house and address claims from two witnesses that they saw him with the US$20,000 in cash.
Source - zimlive
