Magistrate defers ruling on State’s attempt to indict Roy Bennett – ZLHR

ZLHR Press Release – 13 Oct : A Mutare Provincial Magistrate will on Wednesday 14 October 2009 deliver judgment on the State’s application to indict Deputy Agriculture Minister-Designate and Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) Treasurer Roy Bennett for trial in the High Court.

Law officers Michael Mugabe and Chris Mutangadura from the office of the Attorney General (AG) caused a delay in the commencement of proceedings which were due to kick off at 08:30hrs today and were stood down to 14:30hrs, as they only arrived in Mutare after 15:00hrs, citing an inability to access fuel for the journey.

They sought to further delay the proceedings in this long-outstanding matter by informing Provincial Magistrate, Lucy Mungwari that the State now intended to indict Bennett for trial in the High Court, rather than allow the trial to proceed today in her court. They further advised that they intended to prosecute Bennett next week in Mutare, where the High Court will be conducting its Circuit Court.

All along, the AG’s representatives have sought to continue proceedings in the Magistrates’ Court, but are now arguing that this Court does not have jurisdiction to consider the matter.

Defence lawyers, led by Beatrice Mtetwa, told Magistrate Mungwari that the State was now backtracking on an earlier agreement in which the AG’s office had agreed and undertaken to commence trial proceedings on 13 October 2009 in the Magistrates’ Court. They argued that the AG’s office had not given Bennett any notice of their intention to indict him in the High Court, and nor had they served him or his lawyers with any papers.

The defence lawyers also accused the law officers of attempting to delay the trial of Bennett so as to frustrate his removal from remand. At Bennett’s last appearance for remand, his lawyers had placed on record before the court, and given notice that if the State failed to commence with the trial on 13 October 2009, they would apply for refusal of further remand.

Magistrate Mungwari will deliver her ruling tomorrow at 14:30hrs on whether the State has complied with the law in relation to their attempts to indict Bennett, or whether the State is raising this argument for purposes of frustrating his removal from remand.

The Magistrate will also rule on whether the AG had agreed with defence lawyers that 13 October 2009 had been set as Bennett’s trial date and whether the AG’s Office had advised the court that trial would be held in the regional court and not in the High Court.

If Magistrate Mungwari rules in the State’s favour, the former Chimanimani legislator’s bail would be revoked upon service of the indictment, and he would be recommitted to Mutare Remand Prison pending trial, in circumstances similar to those of Zimbabwe Peace Project executive director, Jestina Mukoko and other abductees, who were freed on bail, but were then returned to custody at Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison after they were indicted in May 2009.

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