HARARE - A Harare magistrate has jailed for 15 years a Chinhoyi cop accused of raping a 20-year-old woman.

Lawrence Mashonganyika, 29, however, escaped with a lesser sentence of 10 years after regional magistrate Clever Tsikwa suspended the other five years.

Prosecutor Tracy Mundanga urged the court to pass a custodial sentence, arguing Mashonganyika had committed a serious offence.

“He is a law enforcing agent, a duly attested member of the Zimbabwe Republic Police. Usually this is aggravating on its own as it shows that he does not mind giving a bad name to the office,” said Mundanga.

Mashonganyika, who fathered five children with an equal number of women, committed the offence during the night of August 26 this year.

The court heard when Mashonganyika met the woman, they had a general talk since they grew up in the same neighbourhood.

Mashonganyika asked the woman to accompany him to his brother’s house where he said he wanted to collect his cell phone.

Upon arrival at the house, the court heard Mashonganyika invited the woman into the house on the pretext that he wanted her to greet his grandmother.

He held the woman by the hand and dragged her into the house and took her to one of the rooms.

Mashonganyika pushed the woman onto a bed. He started kissing and fondling the woman’s breasts before raping her, while gagging her mouth.

After the rape, the court heard, the woman went to her grandmother’s house where she disclosed the abuse to her sister and other relatives.

The matter was reported to the police, leading to Mashonganyika’s arrest. - Tendai Kamhungira