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Crime Reporter
Police have accused High Court Judge, Justice Garainesu Mawadze’s son, and his defence team of continuously making several applications before the courts in a bid to delay proceedings of a murder case in which he is being accused.
According to investigating officers, the attitude of Munyaradzi Mawadze and his defence team is now being seen as a ploy to also frustrate the witnesses.
Mawadze is accused of killing Sipho Million Ncube, who was a Harare cellphone dealer in March 2020.
He is being jointly charged with Elvin Dongo Saungweme (22) and Dellon David Balani (22) on allegations of killing Ncube by slitting his throat with a knife after robbing him of three iPhone Promax 11 cellphones.
The trio allegedly took the dealer from his trading area near Chicken Slice food court along Angwa Street, after posing as cellphone buyers before driving to Waterfalls where they robbed him of his cellphones.
They reportedly stabbed him several times with a knife and drove to a farm in Ruwa where they dumped his body.
Members of the dealer’s family had reported him missing, but the matter came to light when detectives from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Homicide took over the investigations.
A team of detectives was then set up to investigate the matter.
The team then received information that the dealer was last seen in the company of Mawadze, then a first-year student of Law at the University of Zimbabwe.
Police launched a manhunt for Mawadze, who was found and arrested in Masvingo.
Police brought him to Harare for further investigations where he reportedly admitted to murdering the dealer.
On March 26, 2020, the three appeared at Harare Magistrates Court and were denied bail and advised to apply for bail at High Court and the matter was deferred to 14 April 2020 for routine remand.
They were later granted bail.
Police said on September 26, 2022, trial commenced at the High Court before Justice Dube Banda with law officer Mr Terence Mukuze appearing on behalf of the State and Mawadze was being represented by Advocate Thabani Mpofu of Advocate Law Chambers and Mr Saurombe BP of Dube Manikai Hwacha Law firm.
It is alleged that Adv Mpofu then made an application for separation of trial, his grounds being that Saungweme and Balani had become hostile by pushing the blame of the heinous act on Mawadze.
The matter was then postponed to September 27, 2022 for ruling on the application in the same court.
On September 27, 2022 the accused persons appeared before the same court and the application of a separation of trial was denied.
On October 3, 2022 the defence team made another application citing change of circumstances and again the application was dismissed.
According to police, on October 6, 2022 the defence team made another application for the separation of trial and the court granted the application, citing that Mawadze had a right to a free trial.
The matter was deferred to February 8, this year before the same judge for commencement of trial proceedings and when the trial was about to commence against Mawadze, police said, his new defence counsel made another application to have the matter deferred to February 27 after citing that they had not gone through the State papers, as well as witness statements and as such, they needed time to prepare their defence.
The court dismissed the application on the basis that it would not be seen continuously giving in to their applications while at the same time inconveniencing State witnesses.
The matter was then postponed to February 9 for trial commencement without fail and on that same date, Mawadze, through his lawyers, made another request that he wanted to be represented by two defence counsels.
The court ordered that a Pro Deo be availed to him and the proceedings were temporarily adjourned for 30 minutes whilst Mawadze’s request was being attended to.
When the court proceedings later resumed, the Pro Deo, Mr Chipupuri B. of Thompson Steveson and Associates requested a short break of about 20 minutes.
The Court adjourned the proceedings to about 2.30pm to afford the new lawyer more time to go through the State and witness statements.
On the same date at around 2.30pm when the Court sat, Mr Chipupuri made a sudden U-turn and requested to be recused.
His reasons being that he once worked with Mawadze’s father, Justice Mawadze of Masvingo High Court, and further more he was a mutual friend to the now deceased to such an extent that he attended his funeral and burial.
Mawadze was called to the stand and was ordered by the Court to find the defence team of his choice.
The matter was postponed to February 13 where it was again postponed to February 27 for a possible commencement of trial proceedings.
Online Reporter