Businessman acquitted over R3,1m cigarettes haul

Given Muleya (28) of House Number 729 Dulibadzimu suburb in the border town, had pleaded not guilty to contravening Section 184 of the Customs and Excise Act (possession of goods liable for excise duty payment) when he appeared before Beitbridge provincial resident magistrate, Ms Gloria Takundwa.

He was acquitted due to failure by the State to prove beyond reasonable doubt that he intended to smuggle the cigarettes.

The State also failed to come up with a factual basis to prove that no excise duty or surtax was paid for the consignment.

In his defence through his lawyer, Mr Misheck Hogwe of Hogwe, Dzimirai and Partners, Muleya denied the charges arguing that he lawfully acquired the cigarettes after having purchased them from a tobacco processing company and registered traders.

He further argued that it was not his responsibility, but that of the manufacturer to pay excise duty.

Muleya said he was subjected to arbitrary search by police and Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) officers without an explanation sought from him at the time of the raid and subsequent seizure of the cigarettes.

The prosecutor, Mr Jabulani Mberesi, said on 1 November, police got a tip-off that there were some cigarettes hidden at a homestead belonging to Mr Edzisani Muleya in Tshapfutshe village.

They then teamed up with Zimra officials and raided Muleya’s homestead under an operation code-named Sukani Emanzini.

On raiding the homestead, they found 1 081 boxes of cigarettes of different brands hidden inside five huts.

It is alleged that the homestead was being used as a warehouse to store the cigarettes haul while waiting to be smuggled into South Africa through undesignated entry points along the Limpopo River, the court heard.

On being quizzed by Zimra officers, Muleya failed to produce the required customs documents to prove that excise duty had been paid on the cigarettes leading to his arrest.

The cigarettes were seized by Zimra and taken to the local customs warehouse for safekeeping but since Muleya has been acquitted he is likely to have his cigarettes back.