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Mashudu Netsianda, Senior Court Reporter
THE High Court has dismissed an appeal against sentence by a drug peddling vendor who is serving a 15 month jail term for possessing bottles of intoxicating cough syrup and 3,92 kilogrammes of mbanje with a street value of $4 000 that was stashed in 12 bags at his house.

Richard Magwenzi (34) of Mzilikazi in Bulawayo was convicted on his own plea for possessing dagga and unregistered drugs.

He was was sentenced to an effective 15 months in jail in February last year.

Dissatisfied with the sentence, Magwenzi through his lawyers Mathonsi Ncube Law Chambers filed an appeal at the Bulawayo High Court arguing that the trial magistrate in the matter misdirected himself by giving him a harsh sentence.

In his appeal, he said the court erred in fact and in law by sentencing him to 15 months in prison when a fine would have met the justice of the case. He sought an order setting aside the sentence and substituting it with a fine.

In dismissing the application, Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Martin Makonese sitting with Justice Maxwell Takuva ruled that the appeal lacked merit.

“From the foregoing precedents, it is clear that the sentence imposed by the court a quo is not only appropriate, but in line with the decided cases. There is no misdirection on the part of the trial magistrate and in the result, the appeal has no merit and it is hereby dismissed,” ruled Justice Makonese.

The judge said the quantity of dagga involved in Magwenzi’s case called for nothing less than a custodial sentence.

“Severe penalties have in the past been imposed for possession of dagga clearly meant for resale. In recent times there has been an upsurge of cases involving drug and substance abuse, and the task of the police to combat this crime is indeed formidable. The offence is not easy to detect and in most cases the police have to rely on tip-offs,” said Justice Makonese.

The court heard that on January 30 last year shortly after 9PM police received a tip off that Magwenzi was in possession of dagga and bottles of Bronco clear cough syrup at his house in Mzilikazi suburb. They raided his house and found seven 100ml bottles of Bronco cough syrup and plastic bags full of prepared dagga inside a wardrobe and under the bed.

The dagga weighing 3,92kg comprised of 30 sachets with a street value of $3 925.

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