adminThandeka Moyo Court Reporter
A MAN from Tshabalala suburb in Bulawayo who created a Facebook page that he used to attack his former boss, prominent businessman Raj Modi, by claiming that he practised slavery at the workplace, was yesterday fined $200 for sending offensive messages.
Million Mukiri was fined for violating the Postal and Telecommunications Act which criminalises sending offensive or false telephone messages.
“This court finds you guilty of sending offensive messages on Facebook about Raj Modi your former employer. You’re ordered to pay a $200 fine or face six months imprisonment,” said regional Magistrate Chrispen Mberewere.
“The messages that were posted on the Facebook page clearly show that the person who created the page was intimately connected with Bellevue Spar and other Spar shops in one way or the other. The court believes that due to the evidence against you, you were the one who created the Facebook page.”
Mukiri created the Facebook page Ilifa Lethu, Nhaka Yedu that he used to demonise Modi between July 4 and September 21 last year. The page described itself as a: “Concerned Zimbabwean fighting slavery in the 21st century, exposing false pretenders in our motherland (Zimbabwe) at Bellevue Spar Bulawayo, Zimbabwe under Raj Modi”.
A forensics expert Cain Nhemachena told the court that when they examined a number of devices that include phones and laptops, they detected that an Apple iPhone which belonged to Mukiri was the device that was used to make posts on the Ilifa Lethu, Nhaka Yedu page.
The businessman felt offended and reported the matter to the police. Police then seized all cell phones and laptops from all Bellevue spar employees including Mukiri’s Apple iPhone that linked him to the offence.
In his defence, Mukiri denied authoring the offensive posts between July 4 and September 21 last year. He also claimed that the seized iPhone was not his and that he had never used it on Facebook at any point.
Online Reporter