Matapo convicted of attempting to escape from prison

to attempting to escape from lawful custody, but regional magistrate Mr Morgen Nemadire convicted them because of overwhelming evidence.
In his judgment, Mr Nemadire said their accomplice prison officer Donald Gwekwerere had no reason to lie against the pair.
“Guilty of the two persons has been satisfactorily established by the prosecution, therefore they are found guilty,” he said.
The agreed facts are that sometime at the beginning of June 2010, Gwekwerere was approached by seven remand prisoners among them Matapo and Lucky Mhungu.
They requested his assistance to escape.
Gwekwerere agreed to assist them escape from Chikurubi Remand Prison Cell No 2 Down FA Hall.
He was given US$100 by a relative of one of the prisoners to buy the tools to be used by the seven in their jailbreak.
He pocketed the remainder.
During the period between March 29 and April 3 the same year, Gwekwerere bought a hacksaw, seven hacksaw blades, five glass cutters, a pair of pliers, a claw hammer and a 10-metre long rope from Mbare Musika.
He allegedly took the tools to his house within Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison Camp.
Gwekwerere smuggled the tools into the prisoners’ cell together with an assortment of brandy and spirits in plastic containers for the prisoners to drink.
On April 5, 2010 at about 3am, the prisoners cut one burglar bar securing the observation window of their cell. They smashed the shatterproof observation window pane of the cell using the tools.
The prisoners were, however, intercepted before they could escape.