Pleased :-) Published on 02 July 2014 Written by The Zimbabwe Mail The Supreme Court has granted freedom to a convicted game ranger who was sentenced to death last year by a High court Judge after fatally shooting a Gokwe man during an operation to arrest elephant poachers. Justice Paddington Garwe, in agreement with Justice Vernanda Ziyambi and Justice Ben Hlatshayo, set aside the conviction and death sentence of Maxwell Bowa, saying that the shooting to death of the poacher resulted from an attempt to institute arrest. In the present matter, the killing of the deceased, though unfortunate, was the result of a bona fide attempt to apprehend persons who were believed to be armed and involved in poaching activities. The incident occurred in the spur of a moment during the execution of official duty, in poor visibility and in circumstances in which the appellant may have genuinely believed that harm was likely to befall him,” said Garwe. Maxwell Bowa (53), a senior game ranger with the National Parks and Wildlife, successfully appealed against the death sentence imposed on him last year by Justice Lawrence Kamocha. Bowa shot and killed Lennon Nkosana, believed to have been a gang member of an illegal hunting syndicate infamous for elephant poaching in safari areas in Gokwe. According to court documents, an unidentified Assistant Commissioner with the Zimbabwe Prison and Correctional Services (ZPCS) was apprehended by game park officers at a road block while carrying ivory. On his arrest, he implicated Tanaka Nyoni and Moses Makwavarara as the source of the ivory. Thereafter, further information was received by the National Parks and Wildlife that the duo operated its poaching activities with Nkosana. In an attempt to arrest the suspected poachers, rangers and police officers teamed up and proceeded on patrol to Simchembo area of Gokwe North on June 12 2012. Nine of the game rangers were armed with rifles. The authorities arrived at Nyonis homestead at around 0100hrs and realised that he was not present. After failing to locate the suspect, they proceeded to Nyonis fathers homestead and upon arrival, split into two groups in order to secure two paths that exited the homestead. Two unidentified people were observed running away, including the deceased. Bowa then fired with his rifle, hitting Nkosana on the chest and killing him instantly. Bowa was later arrested for the murder of Nkosana and his weapon subsequently confiscated by police. At the time of Bowas sentence by Justice Kamocha, the judge highlighted that the accused had shot the deceased and intentionally killed him when he never posed a threat to his life.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Jul 2014 07:40:26 +0000
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