Brutal assault at mine: Litten Chikoore convicted

A Kadoma businessmen captured assaulting Pedzisai Mangisi of Chief Nemangwe area in Gokwe South for stealing from him in a 45 second video that went viral, has been convicted of assault.

Litten Chikoore (35) of Waverley in Kadoma was convicted by Kadoma magistrate Mr Takudzwa Gwazemba on Friday last week after he pleaded guilty to the charge.

He was remanded out of custody to April 10 for sentencing.

Mr Gwazemba said Chikoore was a suitable candidate to be remanded out of custody as he had handed himself to the police in the company of his lawyer Mr Ignatius Murambasvina of Murambasvina Legal Practice.

Mrs Gracious Chaminuka for the State told the court that Chikoore assaulted Pedzisai Mangisi of Chief Nemangwe area in Gokwe South several times all over the body with a baton stick on an unknown date sometime in November last year at his mine in Kadoma.

She said Mangisi sustained serious injuries following the assault and a medical report was produced in court as an exhibit. Mrs Chaminuka said Chikoore deserved a custodial sentence as he was a potential criminal with previous three cases at the court which were all withdrawn before trial.

The cases included a 2014 attempted murder case under CRB number 12/06, pretending to be a policeman under CRB number 12/08 and allegedly contravening the Mines and Mining Act in 2016.

Mr Murambasvina, however, pleaded with the court to give Chikoore a non-custodial sentence arguing that he was a first offender who had co-operated with the police when he handed himself and assisted them to locate the complainant.

He also said Chikoore was sole breadwinner for his two wives and six children and the complainant did not suffer serious injuries as shown by the medical report.

Mr Murambasvina said his client first handed Mangisi to the police after discovering that he had stolen 400 grammes of gold from him but they were advised to have an out of court settlement which infuriated him leading to him assaulting the complainant.

He further argued that Chikoore had already suffered psychological trauma as the matter had received too much attention on social, local and international media._The Chronicle

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