Online Reporter
Danisa Masuku [email protected]
A LAWYER representing the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Service (ZPCS) has argued that there was no proof that prison escapee Mike Cabangani Mathe was lent US$2 000 by his client, and that he had no witnesses to corroborate his evidence.
Bulawayo regional magistrate Mr Taurai Manuwere heard this when Yusufu Yusufu (47), a ZPCS officer at Plumtree Prison, appeared before him on Monday, facing a charge of facilitating an escape from lawful custody.
At the close of the State case, the lawyer representing the accused, Mr Stanely Chinyanganya, argued that the State accomplice witness, Mathe, was not reliable.
“The accomplice witness is not a reliable witness because he failed to call a single witness to corroborate his testimony and he refused to name any single witness who sat by the door while he cut the prison burglar bars to escape,” argued Mr Chinyanganya.
The lawyer also argued that Mathe is a notorious criminal who has been in custody facing several criminal cases.
“He is a well-known, fearsome criminal in Plumtree and cannot be relied on as a credible witness. He is not telling the truth that the accused helped him escape from jail because the accused was strict and did not tolerate any misbehaviour from Mathe,” argued Mr Chinyanganya.
The lawyer further submitted that in some instances the State witnesses did not corroborate one another in their testimonies.
“Mathe told this court that he was banned from using an official cellphone belonging to Plumtree Prison, but another State witness, Mr Bhekumuzi Khanye, told this court that Mathe was not banned from using the official prison cellphone to communicate with his wife,” he argued.
The State, represented by Ms Mufaro Ndirayire, opposed discharge at the close of the State case, submitting that there is direct evidence that the accused aided the accomplice witness to escape from prison.
“The State has established a prima facie case. In the present matter, the accomplice witness gave direct evidence implicating the accused and stating that the accused gave him two hacksaws, which he used to cut the burglar bars,” submitted Ms Ndirayire.
The matter was postponed to 6 July.
Prosecuting, Ms Mufaro Ndirayire told the court that Mathe, who was serving a 20-year prison sentence at Plumtree Prison under prison number 25625, escaped from lawful custody at about 2AM on 15 November last year.
At the time, Mathe was also facing other charges, including murder, having sexual intercourse with a young person and physical abuse.
“On 15 November last year at around 2am, Mathe escaped from Plumtree Prison by cutting the burglar bars of his holding cell window using two hacksaw blades supplied by the accused,” said Ms Ndirayire.
The court heard that Mathe fled the prison after cutting the burglar bars, leaving behind the two hacksaw blades allegedly used during the escape. The prosecution intends to produce the blades as exhibits.
Following the jailbreak, Mathe allegedly crossed into Malawi, where he disguised himself as a street vendor while evading capture.
His freedom ended when Malawian authorities arrested him after he failed to produce valid identification documents and was found to have entered the country illegally.
He was deported to Zimbabwe on 24 February and was immediately arrested by Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Homicide detectives upon arrival at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport.
Mathe later appeared before Bulawayo Regional Magistrate Mr Mathew Mutiro, who convicted him of escaping from lawful custody and sentenced him to six years’ imprisonment.
