Senior Court Reporter
Two Harare Municipal police officers who are accused of killing a taxi driver they had arrested, were today freed on US$50 bail each. High Court judge Justice Garainesu Mawadze ordered the release of the duo upon satisfaction that they were proper candidates for bail.
Fanuel Toringepi (33) and Hilda Chinya (43) arrested taxi driver Dick Samuel Goliath for parking at an undesignated place and allegedly strangled him to death on their way to the city’s recovery yard in Coventry Road.
It is alleged that on noticing that Mr Goliath had lost consciousness, the two city cops fled.
Justice Mawadze today ordered Toringepi and Chinya to report to the police once fortnightly and warned them against interfering with State witnesses.
Law officer Mr Edmore Nyazamba represented the State while Harare lawyer Mr Knowledge Maeresera acted for the pair.
The two will be back at the Harare Magistrates’ Courts next Wednesday for routine remand.
Prosecutor Miss Sharon Mashavira alleges that on January 25 at around 5pm, Goliath – who was employed by Safeway Taxis as a driver – parked a Toyota Spacio along Park Lane in Harare.
Toringepi and Chinya, who are employed by City of Harare’s traffic by-laws enforcement section, and were in civilian attire, accused him of violating municipal by-laws by parking at an undesignated place.
They allegedly assaulted him before getting into his vehicle. They ordered Goliath to drive to their recovery yard.
They allegedly ordered him to stop the vehicle when they got to the intersection of Chinhoyi Street and Samora Machel Avenue.
They throttled him until he lost consciousness, it is alleged.
Toringepi and Chinya exited the taxi and got into their recovery vehicle, which had arrived at the scene, and drove away.
Goliath was rushed to hospital by passersby Jimmy Maturure and Fungai Makanga but was pronounced dead on arrival.
Post-mortem results revealed that he died due to strangulation.