Dealing in prohibited beer lands top cop in hot soup

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A senior police officer based in Marondera was last week jailed for three months after he was found with large quantities of prohibited Mozambican beer near Mutare.

Mutare — A senior police officer based in Marondera was last week jailed for three months after he was found with large quantities of prohibited Mozambican beer near Mutare.

BY OBEY MANAYITI

Jackson Chakanyuka, a police assistant inspector, pleaded guilty to contravening the customs and excise Act which criminalises the possession of goods prohibited for importation.

Alternatively, magistrate Waini Makamera ordered Chakanyuka to pay a US$200 fine, failure of which he will serve three months.

Charges against the police officer are that on May 20 this year, he was found with the prohibited beer near Odzi by a team of police officers who were conducting a stop and search exercise along the Harare-Mutare road.

The officers stopped a Toyota Vitz driven by Chakanyuka to conduct the search and they found 40 cases of Royal Whisky and 15 cases of Zero gin on the back seat and boot of the vehicle.

In mitigation, the police officer said he was in the business of selling the illicit beer because he wanted to supplement his meagre salary.