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Nyore Madzianike Manicaland Bureau
AN unlicensed truck driver, who caused an accident that resulted in the death of one passenger and serious injuries to five others in Nyanga last year, escaped jail after a Mutare High Court overturned his custodial sentences on two traffic offences.
On the first count of culpable homicide, Walter Kambuzuma, who was employed at Everen Forest as a driver, was initially jailed by a Nyanga magistrate for 36 months after he was found guilty of causing the death of Charles Chimbwanda and serious injuries to Sidney Mateta and others.
Twelve months of his term were suspended on condition of good behaviour and was banned for driving heavy vehicles for life.
Kambuzuma was also fined $300 for his second count of driving without a valid driver’s licence and also risks being jailed for 90 days if he fails to pay the fine on or before November 30, 2019.
He approached the Mutare High Court appealing against both sentences, arguing that the lower court had erred when it failed to explain the meaning of special circumstances when he was not legally represented.
In his application at the High Court, Kambuzuma said the sentence induced a sense of shock in him as the court failed to establish the weight of the vehicle in question when sentencing him.
Mutare High Court judge Justice Isaac Muzenda noted in his judgment that the court misdirected itself when it failed to consider the weight of the vehicle in question which warrants him to interfere with the custodial sentence which had been given.
“It is apparent from the reading of the proceedings of the court a quo that indeed the above aspect of the weight was not considered. Such absence of weight of the vehicle is so fundamental and failure to have the weight of motor vehicle in our view was a misdirection.
“That misdirection warrants this court to interfere with the sentences passed by the court a quo,” he said.
Justice Muzenda then ordered Kambuzuma to pay $1 000 fine for the first count, failure of which he will spend three months behind bars.
In addition, Justice Muzenda slapped him with a wholly suspended six months jail term on condition that he does not commit a similar offence within the next three years.
Kambuzuma was also prohibited from driving vehicles falling under Class 2 for life.
Circumstances leading to his arrest and subsequent conviction were that on May 9 last year at around 10:20am, he was driving a lorry along Chamakowa Road, which is about 100 metres off the Rusape-Nyanga road.
He was carrying six passengers who were seated on top of the load he was carrying in the truck.
Kambuzuma lost control of the truck, swerved to the right of the road throwing out the passengers who were seated on the load.
Chimbwanda died on the spot while Mateta was seriously injured.
Kambuzuma admitted to the charges when he appeared at Nyanga Magistrates’ Court.
Online Reporter