Two Police officers deployed to ZRP Beitbridge rural who were recently arrested for allegedly torturing to death and burning the remains of a suspect they had arrested for an alleged theft, have appeared in court charged with murder.
Xander Siasayi (33) of Tuli Police Station and Daniel Peyani (32) of Zezani Police Station are accused of allegedly hiding the body of Blessing Nare (23) in a drainage.
Nare was being accused of stealing R10 140 and US$200.
They were both not asked to plead when they appeared before Beitbridge resident magistrate, Mr Toyindepi Zhou who remanded them in custody to 15 February.
Prosecuting, Mr Ronald Mugwagwa said on December 20, 2020, at around 8am, the now deceased’s girlfriend, Beatrice Ndou (24), who is employed at Toporo Special Bottle Store, made a report at Swereki Police Base alleging that Nare broke into Toporo Special Bottle Store and stole cash amounting to R10 140 and $200.
Upon receiving the report, Siasayi and Peyani, who were manning the police base, did not record it in the report book.
The court further heard that on the same date around 7pm, Nare was picked from Toporo Special Bottle Store, where he was residing with his girlfriend.
The two cops escorted him and a co-accused, Godknows Mbedzi, back to Swereki Police Base where they spent the night.
The State further alleges that on the following day at around 6am while at the police base, the accused persons assaulted the now deceased with a stick on the thighs and buttocks several times interrogating him about the alleged break-in.
It is also alleged that they assaulted the now decease in the presence of Mbedzi who they later released.
The accused persons then took Nare to Toporo Business Centre in a bid to recover the stolen money.
While at the business centre the accused persons got into the now deceased’s room and assaulted him with a stick on the buttocks several times.
This was allegedly witnessed by his girlfriend and they later escorted him back to Swereki Police Base.
On the same day, at around 8pm, the accused persons were seen at Swereki shops without the now deceased.
-State Media