The ManicaPost
Lovemore Kadzura
Rusape Correspondent
TWO Nyanga police officers who turned themselves into debt collectors and exerted undue pressure for a gold buyer to pay a debt he was disputing were recently jailed for abuse of office and extortion.
Cattallus Mutema (49) and Canaan Chatambarara (37) of Ruwangwe Police Station appeared before Nyanga magistrate, Ms Notebulguar Muchineripi, who convicted them due to overwhelming evidence.
Ms Muchineripi sentenced them to 18 months in prison, of which six months of the sentence were suspended on condition of good behaviour.
Mutema and Chatambarara were represented by a Mr T Pfigu of Pfigu Attorneys and were denying the charges.
State prosecutor, Mr Tafara Chawatama said Mutema and Chatambarara detained a gold buyer, Dismount Samakande, and forced him to pay Gift Chari and John Nyamiti US$3 900 despite his denial of any knowledge of the debt.
“Dismount Samakande of Samakande Village, under Chief Katerere, is a registered gold buyer, and on July 9, Mutema and Chatambarara were approached by Maxwell Kangarade, Gift Chari and John Nyamiti who were asking for their assistance to recover US$3 900 which they alleged Samakande had borrowed from them. Chari and Nyamiti claimed the money had been borrowed through a Kangarade who used to work for Samakande. They claimed that the money had been used to buy gold.
“Mutema phoned Samakande and asked him to report at ZRP Ruwangwe. Samakande complied and when he met Mutema, he was told him that he was under arrest for defrauding Chari and Nyamiti of US$3 900. Samakande denied the allegations, and said he never borrowed any money or even instructed or authorised his former employee, Kangarade, to borrow money from the two,” said Mr Chawatama.
But Mutema instructed a police officer who was in the charge office to detain Mutema and only to release him after settling the alleged debt.
Samakande was thrown into the holding cells.
Feeling cornered, Samakande asked his young brother, Desmere, to bring the money.
“Samakande handed over US$3 000 to Chari and US$ 900 to Nyamiti in the presence of Mutema, Chatambarara, Sergeant Muusha and Constable Mudondo. Mutema dismissed the other police officers from the office and asked Samakande to remain at the police station,” said Mr Chawatama.
Mutema and Chatambarara further extorted US$70 from Samakande after telling him they would not drop the ‘fraud charges’ against him.
Constable Mudondo was peeping through the window and witnessed Mutema and Chatambarara extorting the money from Samakande.
“Samakande was later released from police custody. Chatambarara later approached Constable Mudondo and gave him US$10 to buy his silence,” said Mr Chawatama.
However, Constable Mudondo later teamed up with Samakande to make a police report against the duo at Nyanga Police Station.
“On July 10, Samakande and Constable Mudondo went to ZRP Nyanga and made a report. Constable Mudondo handed over the US$10 he was given by Mutema as an exhibit,” said Mr Chawatama.
