Man jailed for contempt of court

Nguni and several other businesspeople of thousands of dollars in a fuel deal, has been slapped with 30 days imprisonment for contempt of court.
Regional magistrate Mr Never Katiyo jailed Davison Mutakaya (36) for contempt of court after he told him that he would not return to court on his next remand date.
He said if prison officers managed to bring him to court, he would not co-operate with the court.
Mutakanya made the remarks after the court threw out his application for his trial to be transferred to either Mbare or Chitungwiza Magistrates Courts.
In his application, he had told the court that bad blood between him and court officials would result in an unfair trial because he had once swindled a former prosecutor at the courts of cash in a car deal.
This, he said, was the reason why he was being denied bail in the case involving the Minister. Mr Katiyo, however, said he was not suitable for bail because he had been on the run when his accomplices were arrested.
The court considered him to be a flight risk.
“This case is different to the one you are referring to and with different complainants.
“The mere fact that the prosecutor once worked here is not a ground that you won’t get a fair trial,” he said.
Mr Katiyo dismissed his application due to lack of merit. Immediately after Mr Katiyo had given him the trial date, Mutakaya shouted on top of his voice as he was being whisked away by prison officers saying, “Handiuyi uye handife ndakadzokazve pano kutrial yacho,” (I will never come back to this court and will never attend trial).
Mr Katiyo ordered the officers to bring Mutakaya back in the dock and repeat what he had said.
Without fear or remorse he repeated: “Ndati handidzoke pano, kana maprison officers acho akandimanikidza kuuya kucourt ndinongouya kuzogara ndakanyarara handikupindurei, (I said I will never come back and even the prison officers forcibly bring me here I will not co-operate with the court).”
This prompted Mr Katiyo to sentence him to a month in prison for contempt of court.
Mutakaya is reportedly a director of a defunct shelf company called Petranas Zimbabwe. His alleged accomplice Lemuel Marimo is a director of another company called Legitimate Designers.
Prosecutor Mr Mavuto alleges that sometime in July this year Mutakaya acting in common purpose with his accomplices hatched a plan to defraud prospective fuel buyers. Pursuant to this, it is alleged, they advertised in the Financial Gazette that Mutakaya’s company was selling fuel at a low price. The company was operating from Marimo’s offices at Zimta House. In response to the advert, Minister Nguni called and spoke to Mutakaya who was calling himself Chirema.
Minister Nguni, the State alleges, placed an order for 10 000 litres at a cost of US$1,13 per litre. The Minister requested the fuel to be delivered at his Service Station at Mubayira Growth Point.
The total cost of the fuel was US$10 350 and payment was to be made through a bank transfer into Legitimate Designers Stanbic Bank account.
On July 13 last year, Minister Nguni made a transfer of US$10 350 into the account that was the cost of the ordered petrol.
He furnished the alleged accomplices with a copy of the RTGS.
On July 14 at around 6pm only 2 900 litres were delivered at his service station instead of 10 000.
Mutakaya, it is alleged, promised to deliver the balance the following day.
On July 15 no fuel was delivered and Mutakaya became evasive. Minister Nguni allegedly discovered that he had been conned and demanded a refund but Maromo told him that they had withdrawn all the money. He made a report that led to the arrest of Maromo and later Mutakaya.
In another case, the same businessman who also owns a finance company allegedly connived with two senior police officers and fraudulently sold vehicles, title deeds, laptops and various household properties worth over US$45 000 belonging to loan seekers.