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Yeukai Karengezeka Court Correspondent

A former police officer who is famously known as Detective Kedha on social media has appeared in court for allegedly pretending to be a police officer.

Tafadzwa Chidawa (35) appeared before Harare magistrate Mrs Fadzai Mthombeni charged with impersonation of a police officer and assault.

He was granted $100 bail and returns to court on March 27.

Detective Kedha is popular for viral videos in which he targets and ‘apprehends’ thieves in the Harare CBD.

The State prosecutor Mr Ephraim Zinyandu told the court that on March 5, Chidawa and five other accused persons who are at large contacted the first complainant Sallom Gandiya purporting to be a cousin of her boyfriend.

The accused persons invited Gandiya to meet her at the Caledon shops along Seke Road and she hired a taxi to go there which was being driven by the second complainant Watson Gatsi.

Upon arrival at Caledon Shops, the two complainants were approached by Chidawa and his accomplices who introduced themselves as police detectives from Harare Central Police Station.

The accused persons went on to tell the two complainants that they were under arrest.

They pointed to Gandiya alleging that she was lying to her boyfriend that she was pregnant.

The fake police officers went on to put her in some handcuffs.

The court also heard that Gandiya refused to enter their vehicle and the accused started assaulting her with a button stick and forced her into their vehicle, a Toyota Prado.

They reported the matter to the police leading to the arrest of Chidawa.

In January, Chidawa appeared in court for allegedly stealing a vehicle worth US$12 000 from South Africa and smuggling it into Zimbabwe.

The matter is still pending and he has two other pending fraud cases.