A Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS) officer accused of helping convicted rapist and murderer, Mike Cabangani Mathe, escape from Plumtree Prison has been acquitted after a Bulawayo court ruled the State failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.
Bulawayo Regional Magistrate Taurai Manuwere on Wednesday found Yusufu Yusufu (47) not guilty of facilitating an escape from lawful custody, citing inconsistencies in the State’s evidence and a lack of corroboration for key allegations made by Mathe.
In delivering judgment, Manuwere said the prosecution’s case rested largely on the testimony of Mathe, who alleged Yusufu had accepted money to help him escape after previously borrowing US$2 000 from him.
However, the magistrate noted Mathe conceded under cross-examination that there was no documentary evidence to prove he had loaned the money to Yusufu.
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“Mathe testified that he had loaned some money to the accused. He said part of the money was used to pay the accused for assistance to escape. Under cross-examination, he conceded there was no paper trail. No evidence was brought before the court to ascertain whether this had really happened,” Manuwere ruled.
The court also found no evidence to support Mathe’s claim that he had concealed US$500 in prison and used part of it to pay Yusufu to facilitate his escape.
“…but there was no evidence to substantiate that either,” the magistrate said.
Manuwere further found that Mathe had been dishonest about his access to communication while incarcerated.
Although Mathe claimed prison authorities had denied him access to a telephone, the court heard evidence from prison officer Ocean Ndlovu, who admitted allowing the inmate to use his cellphone to communicate with his wife.
Phone records produced during the trial supported Ndlovu’s testimony.
“In his defence, the accused stated he never gave his phone to Mathe to call and that any officer who may have done so was breaking the law. (Yusufu) explained that he had a hostile relationship with Mathe because he reprimanded him for his behaviour while in prison,” Manuwere said.
“The accused person’s explanation could possibly be true, especially after Ndlovu admitted that it was his phone that Mathe had been using. The phone records presented before the court also showed the same.”
The magistrate said the inconsistencies in Mathe’s testimony undermined his credibility.
“After careful consideration of the evidence brought before the court, it is clear that Mathe could not have smuggled money and cigarettes into the prison as he claimed. He also lied to the court that while he was in prison he was denied the use of a phone, yet he used Ndlovu’s phone to communicate with his wife.”
“No witnesses were called to substantiate any of the claims that he made. The accused person’s explanation could be plausible.”
Manuwere ruled that the prosecution had failed to discharge its burden of proof.
“The State failed to fulfil its mandate of proving a prima facie case. The accused is found not guilty and is acquitted.”
Yusufu had denied facilitating Mathe’s escape throughout the trial, maintaining that he had a strained relationship with the inmate after repeatedly reprimanding him for misconduct while at Plumtree Prison.
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