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Court Reporter
A 44-year-old Bulawayo woman appeared in court recently facing charges of shoplifting from three clothing chain stores.Sikhangele Masuku of House Number 56286 Old Lobengula was allegedly in the habit of entering stores where she would buy one item and steal other goods.

Masuku was also in the habit of using one receipt to steal other items, an act done by people popularly known as omarobane.
Masuku initially appeared in court last week and had been remanded to yesterday. She, however, defaulted.

Bulawayo magistrate Ms Marilyn Mutshina issued a warrant of arrest against Masuku who has pleaded not guilty to four counts of theft.
Masuku operates a number of vending stalls at different flea markets in the city.

It is alleged that on different occasions last month, she stole an assortment of clothes from stores such as Topics, Truworths and Edgars which she started selling at her stalls at the flea markets.

The court was told that on 19 August she was arrested by police for possessing clothes suspected to have been stolen and representatives of the stores were invited to identify them.

Mr Vusumuzi Khumalo, representing Topics Bulawayo Centre, positively identified a suit whose tag matched those in the shop.
The shop conducted a stock take and the particular suit valued at $105 was found to be missing.

Representatives from Truworths, Edgars and another Topics branch also established that the different clothing items they had positively identified were missing in their stocks.

Masuku told the police that she bought the clothes from a street vendor in Harare.
The total value of the stolen clothes was about $800.

Mr Dumisani Moyo is representing the State.