adminMercy Ngwebvu
A Sakubva man appeared in court on Monday for trying to extort $19 710 from his former boss whom he alleged to have used him in a self-enriching ritual which left him dysfunctional in the bedroom.
Businessman Prince Tendai Saurombe, who runs several Ecocash outlets in Mutare, was left with no choice but to seek the intervention of the courts after failing to live with his former employee’s continuous demands for money and threats to approach the media about their “little secret”.
The two appeared before Mutare magistrate Mr Langton Mukwengi with Saurombe claiming that he had already paid $3 210 to Kenneth Mutengo, who would not get enough and insisted that the former pay him another $16 500 as “compensation”.
Mutengo pleaded guilty. He told the court that he wanted compensation because of the trauma he was now experiencing caused by the ritual.
“We went to a sangoma who stays in Mhandarume, Chimanimani. He then inserted a coin into Saurombe’s hands and I had to take it out using my bare hands. I got infected with HIV because of that process.
“When we got back, the coin was placed on top of his shop situated at Chakonda building and he made me plant herbs on top of that building too. One condition of that ritual was that I was supposed to marry and will always have a weak erection. This is now affecting me, Your Worship,” said Mutengo.
Public prosecutor Mr Matthew Chimutunga told the court that since March 2014, Mutengo used to be Saurombe’s security guard at his company, Markbrands Investments.
“Mutengo was, however, fired on February 5, this year for alleged gross misconduct. On the February 17, he confronted the complainant demanding $1 000 and threatened to report him to the courts for non-payment of terminal benefits if he did not comply. Saurombe complied and paid him the amount through an Ecocash transaction but insisted that the accused sign an affidavit for having accepted the money,” said Mr Chimutunga.
The accused hatched another plan on February 21 and threatened Saurombe that if he did not give him $2 000, he would approach all the media houses and tarnish his image.
Saurombe complied again and gave the accused $2 210 through three Ecocash transactions. Again he asked that Mutengo write an affidavit,” said Chimutunga.
As if this was not enough, Mutengo approached Saurombe again, on February 24, demanding a lump sum of $16 500 as compensation for the pain he suffered at the hands of his boss when Saurombe’s sangoma performed the ritual on him, which was supposed to enrich the businessman.
Said Chimutunga: “In his bid to end Mutengo’s incessant threats and blackmail, Saurombe told him that he did not have the money on him but advised him to come on a different day so that he would settle the payment.
“Instead he went on to make a report to the police about how Mutengo was extorting money from him.
The accused later went to Saurombe’s work place on April 2 with the intention to collect his money.
He, however, ran out of luck as detectives pounced on him.”
Mutengo was sentenced to 410 hours community service and was ordered to repay the $3 210 he extorted from his former boss.
Online Reporter