3 years jail time for Rimbi Bus driver over Nyamapanda accident

THE driver of the Rimbi Travel Tours bus that was involved in an accident along the Harare-Nyamapanda highway in January has been sentenced to three years in jail.

Misheck Penyai will serve 2 and-a-half years behind bars after he was found guilty of reckless driving.

Penyai was initially sentenced to three years by Mutoko magistrate Mr Elijah Sibanda, before 6
six months were suspended on condition that he does not commit a similar offence in the next five years.

In addition, Penyai was prohibited from driving public service vehicles and his driver’s licence was also cancelled.

Penyai’s conviction and sentence this Tuesday comes a day after his accomplice, Mika Makwara was sentenced to two years by the same court for culpable and reckless driving.

On top of the two-year jail term, Makwara was suspended from driving commuter omnibuses or heavy vehicles for life and his driver’s licence was cancelled.

Penyai and Makwara were arrested early this year following an accident that claimed the life of a Rimbi Travel and Tours bus conductor.

It was the State’s case that early this year, Makwara was driving a bus belonging to Zebra Kiss along Nyamapanda Highway and Penyai was driving another bus belonging to Rimbi Travel and Tours heading towards Mtoko, during which he showed an intention to overtake.

Police investigations also revealed that Makwara started obstructing Penyai by occupying the middle and right lanes competing for passengers, resulting in Penyai hitting the rear end of a tipper truck which was also travelling towards Nyamapanda.

Meanwhile, former deputy minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Douglas Karoro was back at the Harare Magistrates courts for continuation of trial.

Karoro is being jointly charged with Dean Dzimunya, Lovejoy Ngowe, Jeremy Phiri and Ben Chidamba and is being accused of fraud after he allegedly diverted Presidential inputs at Mushumbi Grain Marketing Board depot, which were supposed to benefit the people of Mbire Constituency.

The matter was however postponed after Dzimunya failed to show up, claiming that he was suffering from COVID-19.

The court subsequently issued a warrant for his arrest.