State Withdraws Murder Charges Against Obert Masaraure – Eduzim News

By A Correspondent| The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has withdrawn murder charges against two Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) leaders Obert Masaraure and Robson Chere, who had been arraigned before the court for allegedly assaulting and murdering their colleague, eight years ago.

Masaraure, the president of ARTUZ and Chere, the Secretary-General of ARTUZ, who have been out of prison custody on bail, had been appearing in court since June 2022 and July 2022 respectively, when they were arrested by Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) officers, who charged them with murder as defined in Section 47 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act.

Prosecutors from the NPA alleged that on 11 June 2016, Masaraure and Chere together with four unnamed accomplices, went on a drinking spree in Harare with Roy Issa, where after a misunderstanding with him, they reportedly ganged up against him and assaulted him on the head with unknown weapons resulting in his death.

The prosecutors charged that Masaraure and Chere, who were represented by Doug Coltart and Beatrice Mtetwa of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), concealed the offence by falsely claiming that Isa fell from the balcony of Jameson Hotel resulting in his death.

Issa’s body, prosecutors said, was found lying some six metres away from Jameson Hotel along Park Street in Harare.

On Wednesday 27 November 2024, prosecutors withdrew murder charges against Masaraure after informing the presiding Magistrate that the NPA could not take the trade unionist’s matter to court as ZRP officers were still conducting some investigations, of which they have been reportedly doing so for the past eight years since June 2016.

The prosecutors conceded that it was no longer tenable for them to use the justification of conducting investigations as an excuse to keep Masaraure on remand and for him to continue appearing in court answering to the alleged murder charges.

Earlier on, prosecutors had on Friday 11 October 2024, withdrew murder charges against Chere, after informing Harare Magistrate Dennis Mangosi that law enforcement agents were still conducting some investigations since June 2016, hence his trial could also not commence.

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