News / National
$5 bribe cops' trial opens
7 hrs ago | Views
Five Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) officers appeared in court yesterday as their trial opened over allegations that they accepted a US$5 bribe from a truck driver during an anti-sand poaching operation in Ruwa.
The accused - Dennis Tafadzwa Chivaku, Freeway Muninipi, Givemore Mucheka, Sharon Madondo, and Getrude Ndenga - all pleaded not guilty when they appeared before Harare Magistrate Feresi Chakanyuka. They were attached to a Harare East DHQ operation codenamed "No to Illegal Sand Poaching."
According to prosecutor Kudakwashe Muza, the matter dates back to June last year, when an informant reported to Police Headquarters Internal Investigations that some officers were extorting money from truck drivers involved in illegal sand poaching in Ruwa.
In response, a trap was set. Investigators from Police General Headquarters (PGHQ) accompanied an informant who drove a white Iveco 5-tonne truck, registration AED 2865, into the target zone. The vehicle was not loaded with sand at the time. The informant carried a US$5 note meant to serve as trap money.
Along Sunway Drive in Ruwa, the informant was intercepted by the five officers, who were using a private vehicle owned by one of the accused, Mucheka. The prosecution alleges the officers demanded a bribe for "free passage" and were arrested moments after accepting the marked US$5.
However, through their lawyer Moffat Makuvatsine, the officers denied any wrongdoing. They claimed they never solicited or received any money from the informant, identified as Hardlife Sithole, or any other person on the date in question, July 1, 2024.
In their defence, the accused argue they were on lawful duty and that the truck driver stopped voluntarily at their checkpoint. Chivaku specifically denied initiating the stop, stating the vehicle halted at a routine roadblock and was allowed to proceed after inspection.
The defence also questioned the legality of the trap, arguing it was improperly conducted and biased. "The accused persons will challenge the whole trapping process as having been not in accordance with standard procedure," part of their defence reads. They also criticised the involvement of their superiors as arresting officers, describing it as "prejudicial."
The trial is set to resume next week.
The accused - Dennis Tafadzwa Chivaku, Freeway Muninipi, Givemore Mucheka, Sharon Madondo, and Getrude Ndenga - all pleaded not guilty when they appeared before Harare Magistrate Feresi Chakanyuka. They were attached to a Harare East DHQ operation codenamed "No to Illegal Sand Poaching."
According to prosecutor Kudakwashe Muza, the matter dates back to June last year, when an informant reported to Police Headquarters Internal Investigations that some officers were extorting money from truck drivers involved in illegal sand poaching in Ruwa.
In response, a trap was set. Investigators from Police General Headquarters (PGHQ) accompanied an informant who drove a white Iveco 5-tonne truck, registration AED 2865, into the target zone. The vehicle was not loaded with sand at the time. The informant carried a US$5 note meant to serve as trap money.
Along Sunway Drive in Ruwa, the informant was intercepted by the five officers, who were using a private vehicle owned by one of the accused, Mucheka. The prosecution alleges the officers demanded a bribe for "free passage" and were arrested moments after accepting the marked US$5.
However, through their lawyer Moffat Makuvatsine, the officers denied any wrongdoing. They claimed they never solicited or received any money from the informant, identified as Hardlife Sithole, or any other person on the date in question, July 1, 2024.
In their defence, the accused argue they were on lawful duty and that the truck driver stopped voluntarily at their checkpoint. Chivaku specifically denied initiating the stop, stating the vehicle halted at a routine roadblock and was allowed to proceed after inspection.
The defence also questioned the legality of the trap, arguing it was improperly conducted and biased. "The accused persons will challenge the whole trapping process as having been not in accordance with standard procedure," part of their defence reads. They also criticised the involvement of their superiors as arresting officers, describing it as "prejudicial."
The trial is set to resume next week.
Source - the herald
