By Own Correspondent- Twenty-two-year-old Patience Kutama of Mkoba in Gweru went into labour at the magistrates court and delivered a bouncing baby girl while awaiting her sentence for stealing a cellphone from a reveller in a club.

Proceedings at the Kwekwe magistrates court halted as court personnel assumed midwifery roles assisting Kutama deliver her baby.

She was later rushed to Kwekwe General Hospital where the court followed up to deliver her sentence.

Kutama was jointly charged with Lisa Tongogara, also 22, and were each sentenced to a wholly suspended seven months jail term on condition they do not commit a similar offence in the next five years. Kutama, in her defence, told Kwekwe magistrate Miss Vimbai Mtukwa that she was dumped by her boyfriend and she wanted money to buy provisions for the baby.

“I am really sorry for what I did. I had run out of options as I needed money to fend for myself and the baby,” she told the court.

According to State papers, on 22 March 2019, the two accused were drinking beer at King Solomon’s Hotel when they met Calvin Zepi. At around 2 am, Zepi got drunk and fell asleep while holding his cellphone, a Samsung J7. The two accused then took the phone and hid it. Zeti made a police report the following morning. Kutama and Tongogara went to Gweru where they sold the phone for $80.

Detectives, however, managed to track the phone using a mobile tracker leading to the arrest of the two accused persons. The mobile phone was also recovered.