Cop jailed for assault

Court Correspondent
A policewoman who assaul-ted a community service officer at the Mbare Magistrate’s Court was yesterday slapped with an effective five-month prison term. Babra Chipatiso (28), who is stationed at Avondale Police Station in Harare, was sentenced to 10 months behind bars.

Five months of the sentence were suspended for five years on condition she does not commit a similar offence during that period.

She will serve an effective five months.

In assessing sentence, Mr Stanford Mambanje considered that Chipatiso was a first offender and a family woman but against her it was taken into account that she had committed a serious offence considering she is a police officer.

Facts leading to her conviction are that on November 4 Chipatiso, in the company of her colleague, approached Shingirai Matavire, in her Mbare Magistrates’ Court office.

The court heard that Chipatiso asked Matavire’s supervisor for community service records for Solomon Mombeshora, who was convicted of culpable homicide in 2011.

Matavire’s supervisor told Chipatiso that the record that she was looking for had been taken to the Harare Magistrates’ Court by the director of community service.

Chipatiso began shouting at Matavire’s supervisor accusing her of defeating the course of justice.

She then detained Matavire’s supervisor preventing her from going for lunch and when Matavire intervened Chipatiso turned violent and throttled her.

The matter was reported to the police leading to her arrest.