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Midlands Bureau
The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has charged Gokwe regional magistrate Shepherd Munjanja for unbecoming behaviour following his court case involving a Harare self-confessed prostitute.

According to the charge sheet, Munjanja’s court case, which was extensively covered by the media, brought the judiciary into disrepute.

“You are charged with unbecoming behaviour likely to bring the commission into disrepute,” reads part of the letter to Munjanja (34). He was given 14 days to respond to the charge. Chief magistrate Mishrod Guvamombe told our sister paper Chronicle yesterday that he was in Victoria Falls and would not be able to tell the exact charges preferred against Munjanja.

Sources close to the matter said Munjanja was served with the letter yesterday. Melody Hamandawana, who confessed that she was a prostitute, was accused of robbing Munjanja of $156, a cellphone, his driver’s licence and bank cards.

However, Harare provincial magistrate Vakai Chikwekwe acquitted her saying the State had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt. The State alleged that the 21-year-old lady of the night and her friends used violence and threats to induce Munjanja to surrender his money and other possessions.

She denied the charges and told the court a different story.

She said the magistrate was a long-time client who would hire her for sex each time he came to the capital. She said Munjanja had not paid her. Prosecutors alleged that Munjanja was sitting in his car around 7am on October 26 when he was approached by one unidentified man, who was carrying a rim and two tyres which fit the magistrate’s car.

The man persuaded the magistrate to buy the tyres and further lured him into Treckerell Court, a brothel, claiming he owned an office on the second floor. Upon arrival at the alleged office, the man allegedly shoved Munjanja into a room. There were two men inside and Hamandawana suddenly emerged from an inner room in the company of two friends only identified as Chipo and Tafadzwa.

The trio accused Munjanja of raping one of them some time back and started assaulting him, while searching his pockets.