HARARE The state last week said Peter Michael Hitschmann a key witness in the terrorism trial of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai top ally Roy Bennett Prosecutor Edmore Nyazamba told the court during the matter of Hitschmanns lawyer Mordecai Mahlangu — who was arrested last month for obstructing the course of justice after he prepared an affidavit indicating that Hitschmann was not going to testify against Bennet — that Hitschmann was a competent witness who would be summoned to testify to help the state case against Bennett.
No one has the right to ill-advise or conspire with a state witness. The import of the letter by the accused (Mahlangu) was prejudicial to the trial of the state versus Roy Bennett. The AGs office is armed with evidence from Hitschmann that will help in the trial against Bennett, said Nyazamba.
Mahlangu, who is on a US$100 bail, stands accused of writing a letter to the Attorney Generals office purporting to be Hitschmann. In the letter Mahlangu is said to have written that he would not testify in Bennetts case because the evidence that the state recorded was obtained through torture.
Mahlangu, through his lawyer Advocate Happias Zhou, on Thursday applied to have the charges dropped arguing that the state case did not have any reasonable grounds to show that an offence was committed. The state is opposing the application.
Harare Magistrate Archie Wochiunga will make a ruling on the application on January 13 next year. Hitschmann, a Mutare based arms dealer, has been lined up by the state as one of the key witnesses in Bennetts trial which began at the High Court on November 16.
Bennett, who is accused of possessing weapons for the purposes of committing banditry, insurgency and terrorism charges he denies is currently on a US$5 000 bail.
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