Courage Dutiro
A self-confessed drug peddler has suggested that police officers who arrested him on February 06 could have stolen part of the stockpile they confiscated from him as only a few bottles of the dangerous drugs were declared to the court.
Appearing before magistrate Peter Madiba on Friday last week, Morgan Chimahwinya (27) of Sisk in Masvingo said he was surprised that State papers made mention of only 37 bottles of the much abused broncleer cough syrup instead of the 151 bottles he claimed the police confiscated from him.
Chimahwinya, who pleaded guilty, was being charged for breaching the Medicines and Allied Substances Control Act.
“They took from me 151 bottles of broncleer not the 37 they are alleging,” Chimahwinya confidently told the court.
The magistrate, however, said the case will proceed on what was written on State papers and that Chimahwinya’s allegations against the police was a different case that will have to be investigated separately.
If Chimahwinya’s allegations are anything to go by, it means 114x100ml of the drug disappeared while in the hands of State actors.
It was the State’s case that acting on a tipoff on February 06, police found Chamahwinya in possession of 37x100ml of broncleer in Kaguvi St, Sisk Township and arrested him.
Trynos Madaka represented the State.
