Five years in jail for Zimbabwean who tried to bribe cops with R50

Felix Tandenda Chiyongwa was also fined R5,000 for being an illegal immigrant

A Zimbabwean man who tried to bribe two policemen with R50 has been sentenced to a R50,000 fine or five years in prison for corruption. 

The Giyani specialised commercial crimes court also ordered Felix Tandenda Chiyongwa, 37, to pay a R5,000 fine or serve a one-year sentence for being an illegal immigrant.

“The sentences will be served concurrently, resulting in an effective sentence of five years direct imprisonment,” National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Mashudu Malabi-Dzhangi said in a statement. 

She said Chiyongwa pleaded guilty to the charges. 

On October 5 at Beitbridge, Chiyongwa was approached by two police officers who requested his passport.

“In response, he provided them with an expired passport from 2020. To avoid arrest, he then offered one of the officers R50, requesting that they not take him into custody. The officers accepted the money but subsequently arrested Chiyongwa for his corrupt actions.” 

During the sentencing phase, senior state advocate Martin Molokwane said police officers served as the “immune system” of the country regarding security and crime prevention, and any form of corruption directed against them undermined this system. 

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