$110 cellphone smashed in 50c ‘brawl’

By Andile Tshuma

A magistrate has slammed a Bulawayo resident for “monkeying” around and behaving like a baboon for assaulting a man over 50 cents, destroying his phone worth $110.

Blessing Moyo (25) of Bulawayo’s Nkulumane suburb appeared before Western Commonage magistrate Mr Stephen Ndhlovu yesterday.

He pleaded guilty to negligently causing serious damage to property and was remanded out of custody to tomorrow for sentencing.

Moyo in mitigation pleaded with the magistrate for mercy.

He left the court in stitches when he said he had been playing with his friend when he pushed him to the ground and damaged his cell phone, over 50cents.

“I am sorry Your Worship. I was just playing with my friend. I did not intend to damage his property. I was drunk. I have offered to make a payment plan and restitute my colleague,” said Moyo.

Magistrate Ndhlovu lashed out at Moyo. He described his behaviour as reckless and childish.

“So you’re telling this court that you and your friends play by assaulting each other and causing malicious damage to property. I do not understand how a 25-year-old father of two can stand before a court of law and claim that he was playing or joking when he was actually assaulting someone,” said the magistrate.

“You were playing like baboons, monkeying around. A grown up man with two children, what then would your children do if that is how you behave? What if the complainant had fractured his arm while you were ‘playing’? And you are saying you were drunk. So what? If alcohol made people act this stupid, then it would have long been banned in Zimbabwe.”

Prosecuting, Mr Kenneth Shava said Moyo and Bongani Dube, who is on the run, had a misunderstanding over 50 cents with the complainant Mr Khalip Ndlovu.

“On September 25, this year at Sekusile Shopping Centre in Nkulumane suburb, at around 7PM, Bongani Dube who is still on the run demanded $0,50 from the complainant and he refused,” he said.

“Bongani Dube grabbed the complainant by the collar and then the accused person Blessing Moyo pushed the complainant and he fell to the ground, thereby causing damage to the complainants G-Tel cell phone, which was in his trousers pocket.” The Chronicle