adminMatsinde and Mehluli Tshuma, all former public prosecutors, and Warship Dumba, a former Harare city councillor, are facing charges of impersonating the police, possessing articles for criminal use and breaching the Official Secrets Act.
The quartet, through their lawyers Mr Alec Muchadehama and Mr Chris Mhike, raised Constitutional issues, which they said could only be dealt with at the Supreme Court.
They made the new application after magistrate Mr Tendai Mahwe had dismissed their earlier application in which they wanted the court to order the State to provide them with certain documents.
They argued that they had requested for the documents from the State but had not been given.
In making the application, Mr Muchadehama said, “The court must order the State to supply these particulars to the accused persons, there will be no prejudice to the State, your Worship. We need to defend the accused persons hence these particulars we are requesting are very important.”
Prosecutors Mr Michael Reza and Mr Herald Matura opposed the application, arguing that it was a way of delaying proceedings. Mr Reza said the State supplied the defence with all the necessary documents.
He added that the defence was indirectly ordering the State to prepare a defence for them.
Mr Mahwe dismissed the application for lack of merit.
Mr Muchadehama filed another application to have the matter referred to the Supreme Court, arguing that the accused persons’ rights were violated during their arrest.
To justify the application, Mr Muchadehama told the court that the quartet would take the witness stand and Mpofu was the first to testify.
Mpofu accused the police of inhuman treatment.
The matter continues tomorrow.
Allegations against the four arose on March 17 when detectives received information that they were in possession of dockets they were privately compiling to discredit the judicial system. It is alleged, in the dockets, that they claimed that the police and the AG had failed or refused to investigate cases of corruption involving prominent people in Government.
It is alleged the four had documents of police Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri’s background and another titled “Case for a full investigation into the Ministry of Lands-System of issuing offer letters 1 September, 2009”.
A team of detectives went to Mpofu’s home and found some of the documents, including a laptop and a pistol.
The State alleges that the suspects indicated that they were legal advisors to the Prime Minister and researching on alleged corruption and criminal abuse of office and the appointment of Comm-Gen Chihuri. Investigations also revealed that the accused were being bankrolled by the Institute for a Democratic Alliance for Zimbabwe, the court heard.
Online Reporter