News / National
Madzibaba appeals sentence
12 May 2015 at 15:19hrs | Views
Convicted leader of a sect of the Johane Masowe Wechishanu apostolic church Ishmael Chokurongerwa has lodged an appeal at the High Court.
Chokurongerwa also known as Madzibaba Mufani is serving a 5-year jail term for his role in the assault of Apostolic Christian Council of Zimbabwe officials, police officers and journalists at his Budiriro shrine.
The convicted apostolic sect leader argues that the court misdirected itself in convicting him when he had successfully set up an alibi that of a case of mistaken identity.
He further accuses the magistrate's court of gross error in its findings that then proceedings in CRB 5901/14 were irrelevant when in actual fact both cases were founded on the same set of facts and circumstances.
He also says the court in finding the evidence of Bishop Ndanga and Bishop Chitope as credible relied on the duo's standing in society without paying attention to important circumstances attendant to the evidence of identification.
He finally accuses the magistrate of issuing a sentence which induces a sense of shock by failing to take regard of the personal circumstances of the accused and he begs the superior court to quash the sentence and conviction imposed on him.
Chokurongerwa also known as Madzibaba Mufani is serving a 5-year jail term for his role in the assault of Apostolic Christian Council of Zimbabwe officials, police officers and journalists at his Budiriro shrine.
The convicted apostolic sect leader argues that the court misdirected itself in convicting him when he had successfully set up an alibi that of a case of mistaken identity.
He further accuses the magistrate's court of gross error in its findings that then proceedings in CRB 5901/14 were irrelevant when in actual fact both cases were founded on the same set of facts and circumstances.
He also says the court in finding the evidence of Bishop Ndanga and Bishop Chitope as credible relied on the duo's standing in society without paying attention to important circumstances attendant to the evidence of identification.
He finally accuses the magistrate of issuing a sentence which induces a sense of shock by failing to take regard of the personal circumstances of the accused and he begs the superior court to quash the sentence and conviction imposed on him.
Source - zbc
