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Noah Pito in Hurungwe
An 80-year-old man here was last Friday jailed one month for side marketing his tobacco crop after he had been contracted by a tobacco company. Karoi magistrate Mr Sam Chitumwa gave Shasha Chipunza time to restitute Chidziva Tobacco Processors on three occasions since January this year, but by last Friday the senior citizen had only managed to repay $400 out of $1 490 he owed.

Chipunza’s case arose in June 2014 when he received inputs to grow a hectare of the golden leaf at his Plot No. 8 in Village 11, Nyama Resettlement. Instead of taking his crop to Chidziva after harvest, he sold the tobacco to Premier Auction Floors in breach of his contract with Chidziva.

In January when he first appeared in court, Chipunza was sentenced to an alternative one month jail term in the event he failed to restitute Chidziva. Chipunza asked for time to pay and was granted up to May 31 to settle the debt.

During this period, Chipunza only managed to pay $400 before he asked for another extension to settle the balance. Mr Chitumwa granted him up to June 18. On June 18 Chipunza failed to raise the balance and asked for another chance which he was granted up to July 22 for the last time.

Chipunza was seen off the court premises in the company of prison guards and other inmates as one relative sobbed bitterly over his incarceration.