Salima-based Robert Wilson and two others were on 4th April 2020 alleged to have robbed Mr. Govati Brown of a cell phone, a slasher, and money amounting to MK900. Wilson was arrested and later taken to the First Grade Magistrate Court in Salima.
The State paraded three witnesses to prove the case of robbery which Robert Wilson was charged with. Among the witnesses was the complainant, Mr. Govati Brown, who told the court that on the material day, he was on a bicycle. All of a sudden people pushed him and he fell to the ground. They searched his pockets and the MK900 was taken from him.
The people disappeared into the night and they were not known to him, neither did he see them. He was later called by Salima police to identify his phone. The phone, valued at MK62,000, was sold to another person who sold to another, who mentioned Robert Wilson as the source.
The second State witness, Robert’s landlady, told the court that she bought a phone from Robert at MK7,000. When her son-in-law was arrested for the phone, it traced Robert although there was no mention of MK900, the bike, and other stolen items.
Detective Sub Inspector Mwakilu on his part narrated to the court how he investigated the case. He explained that the phone was being used by Justice Mwagwiro, a son-in-law to Robert’s landlady. When he was arrested, he said the phone was originally bought from Robert Wilson. The detective, therefore, concluded that it was Robert who robbed the complainant.
In his defense after being found with a case to answer, Robert Wilson explained that he is just a business person who fries chips at Kamuzu Road. When a person approached him with a phone for sale, he bought it at MK3,000. He later sold it to his landlady at MK7,000.
Wilson was found guilty of robbery before the First Grade Magistrate Court and after a full trial, he was sentenced to 48 months (4 years) imprisonment.
On confirmation, the initial Judge ordered the file to be set down for confirmation to consider the propriety of the conviction, especially on the adequacy of the evidence used. This time around, Robert Wilson was being represented by Malawi Legal Aid Bureau through Principal Legal Aid Advocate Emily Kusani.
In assessing the burden and standard of proof and the law, it was observed that the State could not prove if the convict was indeed the person who robbed the complainant. The complainant did not see who robbed him, as such, direct evidence could not solve the case but circumstantial evidence. The convict was arrested on suspicion that he was the one who robbed the phone from the complainant but clearly, he only bought it from someone else in the presence of another.
The investigation was equally described as poor because proper tracing was not done. The investigator did not identify the culprit and no identification parade was made.
Justice Mzonde Mvula in conclusion stressed that the prosecution did not prepare a more thorough case. With the failure to properly identify the offender, who was not acquainted with the victim, and where there was no reliable eyewitness identification, there was a likely gap of reasonable doubt.
The High Court Judge, therefore, saw that the conviction and sentence imposed by the First Grade Magistrate were not safe. He quashed them accordingly and unconditionally released Robert Wilson from Nkhotakota Prison unless held for some other lawful cause.
- 10 views