Educationist, wife acquitted

Weekender Correspondent
MANICALAND deputy provincial education director — Oswel Marange — and his wife who were facing domestic violent charges for allegedly abusing their 13-year-old son have been acquitted of the charges by a Mutare magistrate.

Marange and his wife Diniwe Mapfunde were accused of abusing the teenager under Section 7 (d) of the Domestic Violence Act.

Mr Poterai Gwezhira presided over the case while Mr Cuthbert Bhosha prosecuted.

It was the State’s case that Mapfunde allegedly abused her minor stepchild verbally, physically, emotionally and denied him access to food.

“Marange allegedly chased the minor away from home at around 9pm, threatened to kill him if he did not leave the house. The minor had to seek refuge at a neighbour who gave him a phone so he could contact his elder brother,” said Mr Bhosha.

However, the court ruled that the minor did not give sufficient evidence to nail the couple.

The court found out that the minor has since been sent to a boarding school which showed that both parents had interest in the welfare of the child.

“I think some people have a motive to send me packing by fabricating these lies and influencing the child to make false allegations,” Mapfunde told the court.

In the same vein, Marange denied the accusations and told that court that they both took good care of the minor.

“Leo (Marange) is bitter because I evicted him from the house so he is now influencing my youngest son to turn against me,” he testified.

However, Leo Marange who was the complainant in the matter on behalf of his younger brother kept insisting that his brother was being abused.

“Mapfunde is subjecting my brother to untold verbal, physical, emotional and psychological abuse and denies him food,” he said.

Last month, a protection order application was made at the Mutare Civil Courts by Leo on behalf of the child against Mapfunde and Oswel.

It was duly granted to the minor after evidence had been presented in the court.

The trial magistrate, Mrs Yeukai Chigodora, however, concluded by telling Mapfunde and Marange who denied ever abusing the minor that if it were true that they were not abusing the minor, they would not be prejudiced in any way by the granting of the protection order.

Meanwhile, Leo Marange hinted that he will be filing an application for private prosecution.