Spending 10 years in prison for robbery was not rehabilitative enough for Zimbabwean Shephard Chinhure (36) who was recently sent to seven years behind bars again for attempting to steal solar back up batteries installed at communication towers for Orange and Mascom mobile network providers.
Chinhure’s accomplice Farai Urgent Mvere (24) got off with a minimum prison sentence of four years, as a first-time offender.
The duo was intercepted by police two weeks ago in Chadibe, while destroying the concrete cube, so that they could steal the solar powered batteries. Upon being intercepted by the cops, the two men fled the scene only to be caught after police mounted a manhunt.
In sentencing the two Zimbabwean men, Francistown Magistrate Tshepho Magetse said, “it is clear that the 10-year sentence previously imposed on him (Chinhure) did not achieve its intended rehabilitative effect. In fact, one might be forgiven for thinking he rather enjoyed it, so much that, upon deportation, he made a determined and illegal return to Botswana. Not for a fresh start but to escalate his criminal pursuits from robbery to industrial scale sabotage of national infrastructure.”
He said Chinhure’s consistent and deliberate breaking of the law reflects a troubling evolution in criminal behavior, which courts must not ignore. “A fitting and firm sentence will therefore be imposed, to both reflect the seriousness of the offence and make it abundantly clear that repeat offending is not a ticket for a return engagement but an invitation to sterner stiffer consequences”, continued Principal Magistrate.
Chinhure was further slapped with another three years for entering and residing illegally in Botswana. Francistown Magistrate Magetse pointed out that stealing vital components of mobile networks operators such as back up batteries and sell them for a mere P800 is a glaringly reckless and destructive results of criminal greed.
“The offence before this Court involves a deliberate destruction of telecommunication infrastructure, an act that strikes at the heart of national connectivity emergency response systems and public communication. The impact of this offence goes beyond property damage: it disrupts essential services and poses a threat to public safety and security”, emphasized Magetse.
