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Crime Reporter
Police have appealed to the hundreds of inmates who benefited from a Presidential this week to abandon the life of crime and walk on the straight and narrow.
Chief police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba said they would closely monitor recently pardoned convicts.
“We are appealing to those granted this freedom to go back into society and lead a crime-free life. The freedom they have been granted is not a licence to commit crime but to repent and engage in meaningful economic activities as law-abiding citizens,” she said.
Snr Asst Comm Charamba applauded President Mugabe for the amnesty.
“We urge the public to welcome their relatives, friends and colleagues back into society. No one should resort to taking the law into their
hands as a way of settling personal scores,” she said.
On Monday, some 2 000 inmates walked out of prison, with many begging the nation to embrace them as reformed citizens.
President Mugabe extended the Presidential pardon on February 12 this year in terms of Section 112(1)(a) and (d) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe. Under Clemency Order Number 1 of 2014, the President granted a remission of the remainder of the periods of imprisonment to female prisoners regardless of the offence committed save for those sentenced to life imprisonment and death. This saw 195 female inmates at Chikurubi Female Prison set free.
All prisoners under the age of 18, irrespective of the crimes they committed, were freed as were all those sentenced to imprisonment for a period of 36 months or less and who had already served at least a quarter of their sentences.
Online Reporter