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Fidelis Munyoro-Chief Court Reporter
A CHITUNGWIZA man who is serving 18 years in jail for murdering his girlfriend on Wednesday had his attempt to appeal against both conviction and sentence, six years out of time, thrown out.
Pritchard Zimondi killed his girlfriend Monalisa Chinomona in a grisly murder nine years ago. He was tried two years later and convicted of murder with constructive intent.
He made a High Court application for condonation of late filing of the appeal in November last year, six years after his lengthy imprisonment in December 2014.
Zimondi, an actor, blamed the over-long delay on financial constraints to engage a lawyer within the time frame accorded to appealing a judgment after conviction.
However, appeals are noted even without legal assistance and even before a record has been availed especially where a person convicted perceives that gross injustice has been done.
It was on this basis that Justice Amy Tsanga dismissed Zimondi’s application for condonation of late filing of his appeal and also taking into account his prospects of success.
It was also the judge’s findings that failure to act timeously in the circumstances largely pointed to Zimondi’s initial acceptance of the court’s findings hence his late application was inspired by chancing as opposed to a genuine belief that the court erred in its conviction and sentence.
The court also noted that substance of Zimondi’s grounds of appeal were largely questions fact which the trial court had prerogative of hearing and assessing the evidence, stressing that the appeal courts do not interfere with findings of fact unless they are outrageous.
On sentence Justice Tsanga found that the gist of Zimondi’s complaint was that it was based on a faulty conviction, which the judge disagreed.
“The sentence does not induce a sense of shock. If anything it was on the lenient side,” she said.
“Besides being made extremely late into the sentence, the application for condonation for late noting of appeal also lacks merit and the appeal holds no prospects of success.”
Charges against Zimondi arose in April 2012 in Chitungwiza, when he went to Chinomona’s place and found her alone in her bedroom.
He entered the house unnoticed, headed for the kitchen and armed himself with a kitchen knife which he used to stab Chinomona on the left breast.
Zimondi left the knife stuck on Chinomona’s breast and fled.
Chinomona was later discovered dead by her brother Tanyaradzwa, with several stab wounds and the knife stuck on her breast.
Tanyaradzwa reported the matter to the police, leading to Zimondi’s arrest.
He was found in possession of Chinomona’s under garments, the court heard.
Online Reporter