HARARE - It is not over for three Mbare men who were acquitted on charges of taking turns to rape a teenage girl, after the State appealed against the magistrate’s decision to free them.

The trio of Allan Chitimbe, 21, Itai Kanyati, 27 and Owen Belo, 22 was recently acquitted by Harare regional magistrate Esthere Chivasa for lack of evidence, but prosecutor Michael Reza claims the court erred in reaching to such a decision.

Reza said evidence in the case showed the trio had committed the offence. He said evidence led to the
effect that the 18-year-old girl, who was allegedly raped, reported the matter to the police some few minutes after the incident.

Prosecutor Reza said the evidence had been buttressed by the witnesses who testified.

The three who reside in Mbare, one of Harare’s high density suburbs were accused of taking turns to rape the girl without protection in the presence of her friend.

They allegedly picked up the girl at corner Chihota and Chatima Street in Mbare before going to Chitimbe’s house together with the girl’s 22-year-old friend.

According to state papers, the girl’s friend started playing music, while Chitimbe forcefully kissed the girl.

The court heard, Chitimbe stripped the girl and raped her. She screamed for help but no one came to her rescue.

It is alleged after Chitimbe finished raping the girl; Kanyati also raped her, before making way for Belo.

Soon after they had all finished taking turns to rape the girl, the court heard, Chitimbe made a second move.

According to state papers, the three men raped the girl while her friend watched all the encounters in which they did not use protection.

After the acts, the girl dressed, left the house alone and she met another friend along the way. She advised her friend about the rape incident and was advised to report the matter to the police.

She was later accompanied by an unidentified man to report the matter to the police at Stodart, in Mbare, leading to the trio’s arrest.