Own Correspondent|26-year-old Christina Hamilton who made headlines for marrying a medical doctor for convenience before milking him of his money and properties worth half a million dollars was on Tuesday convicted of all charges before she fled from the Harare magistrate’s courts, evading judgement.
Hamilton who was facing charges of theft of trust property and fraud, among others, was found guilty of all four charges against her just before lunch and the matter had been rolled over to 1415hours for sentencing when her lawyer applied that she be placed in his care instead of the court holding cells.
Minutes before Magistrate Francis Mapfumo walked into the court room for court proceedings, Hamilton left the court under the guise of being engaged on a phone call and was never to be seen again. A warrant of arrest has since been issued against her amidst fears that she might flee the country.
Alexander Tarasana Guni said he was still heartbroken following what his wife, Christina Hamilton did to him and is finding it difficult to stomach.
Guni told court that he married Hamilton a month after he met her and in five months, they wedded.
“I was fooled by her looks and I needed a partner for life. I thought I had found one not knowing that the accused never loved me. She hated me yet she needed what I had,” he said.
Hamilton allegedly changed ownership of expensive vehicles while the couple was in Honolulu for their honeymoon.
She also stole $US48,000 from Guni’s safe and made successive withdrawals from his company, Chrylex Medical investments bank account amounting $48,000.
The controversial bride is also accused of stealing $2,800 petty cash and Guni’s academic certificates as well as his practising certificate.
Guni told court that despite paying lobola and also tying the knot with Hamilton, they never stayed together as she kept on giving excuses for staying away from the couple’s matrimonial home.
After they wedded, she vanished together with her boyfriend, identified as Terrence Mauchaza.
“I believe she was working under the instructions of the boyfriend although I still call her my wife. We have not divorced; it hurts that she moved on…I assume because she now has a child who is not mine,” said the doctor.
Guni said Hamilton took with her, her three siblings on their honeymoon in order to deprive him of his conjugal rights.
“She booked a single room for the five of us at Meikles hotel in Harare. I then decided I will enjoy my rights when we go for a trip in Honolulu but then she lied she was having her menses for the two weeks we spent there,” he said.
Guni also told court that he gave Hamilton money to go and shop for their wedding in South Africa three times but she did not bring a single item.
“At one time she told me she was robbed and I had to send over 7000 rands to her, still she did not buy anything,” he said.
According to Guni, although things were patchy, the couple managed to have a posh wedding and it was his testimony that Hamilton’s ex-boyfriends and her other boyfriends were present.
He said Hamilton will make him feel bad each time he confronted her over cash and family disputes.
“I employed her to do administrative work but she never reported for duty. She only came to collect money,” he said.
The complainant told court that he even paid $30,000 for a fake wedding planner, one Hillary Ind who was conniving with his wife.
He said the planner did not organise anything and he lost his $30,000.
After the wedding, when a case for stealing the safe containing $48,000 was reported, Hamilton vanished for four years only to resurface recently.
Guni suspects she was hiding in United States of America.
In her defence to the allegations, she told Harare magistrate Mapfumo that Guni had no properties for her to have married him for convenience as all of the properties belonged to ‘their’ company and that he had manipulated her into marriage as she was only 21 at the time they exchanged vows.
She said everything she had taken was her entitlement as a wife and a shareholder in the company.