Davison Marenga
ZVISHAVANE – Simon Moyo (22) was shell-shocked when he was sentenced to five days behind bars for stealing a Nokia 1200 valued at US$10 by Zvishavane Magistrate Lyn Manyika last week.
Moyo took advantage of his relationship with the complainant, Prisca Chivasa, and disappeared with her cellphone and later sold it.
The theft victim reported the matter to the police resulting in the arrest of Moyo.
It was the State’s case that on May 17, 2017, Moyo borrowed Chivasa’s phone saying he wanted to make a call but he then vanished without returning the phone to its owner.
He later sold the phone for US$10 in Mandava. After discovering that Moyo had disappeared with her phone, Chivasa filed a police and Moyo was arrested two days later.
In his defence, Moyo told the court that he took the phone merely to make a call but an urgent need for money arose, forcing him to sell the phone intending to replace it when the problem was solved.
“Prisca is my girlfriend, I only sold the phone because I needed money to do some errands and wanted to buy her a new phone,” he said.
He was sentenced spend 5 days behind bars or pay a fine of US$30 before the last day of May.
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