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Lovemore Meya Court Correspondent
A self-styled prophet at Kingdom Empowerment Church of Christ was yesterday fined $100 or spend 30 days in prison for stealing a laptop and cellphone worth $820 given to him by a congregant for safekeeping. Donald Garwe (23) of Unit G Extension, Chitungwiza, had prophesied that Martin Nduwiva (18) of Belvedere in Harare would lose the gadgets to thieves.

However, the gadgets were later recovered. Appearing before Chitungwiza magistrate Ms Blessing Murwisi, Garwe denied theft of trust property charges. He was convicted after prosecutor Mr Edmond Ndambakuwa proved a strong case against him.

Ms Murwisi ordered Garwe to pay a fine or spend 30 days in prison if he defaulted. In addition, Garwe was slapped with a wholly suspended two-month prison term for five years.

The incident occurred in August last year when Garwe asked Nduwiva to join his church after telling him his date of birth. Garwe informed Nduwiva that he was now his “spiritual father”.

On December 1 last year, Garwe visited Nduwiva at his house where he prophesied that his HP laptop and a Huawei cellphone were going to be stolen. Garwe convinced Nduwiva to surrender the gadgets to him for safekeeping or risk losing them.

Fearing that he would lose his prized possessions, Nduwiva complied. The court heard that Garwe guaranteed Nduwiva that he was going to pray for the gadgets, but later sold the laptop and returned the cellphone.

Meanwhile, another prophet with the Johanne Masowe eChishanu apostolic sect was severely assaulted by his former wife at his shrine following a dispute, a Harare Civil Court has heard.

Shadreck Runganga, who was seeking a protection order against his ex-wife, Beauty Magarachani, alleged that she assaulted him in front of the congregation. Runganga told magistrate Mrs Marehwanazvo Gofa that Magarachani was chased away by her parents for infidelity and his hope of making her a better wife were in vain as she continued having extra-marital affairs resulting in their divorce.

He said Magarachani also scolded him in public using obscene language and this was affecting him emotionally as a “man of God”.

“She is my ex-wife and she comes to my shrine where I am a prophet and assaults me in front of the congregants,” Runganga said.

“She also destroys my things at the shrine and she dumped our one-year-old child there. She is always threatening me with unknown action and vows not to stop assaulting me until I reconcile with her.

“Whenever she sees me in public, she shouts at me using vulgar words, humiliating me. She was chased away by her parents for (sleeping around) and she has been arrested by police on several occasions for causing violence,” he said.

Magarachani denied the allegations. She told the court that Runganga was framing allegations against her.

“I have never attacked him as he has alleges,” Magarachani said.

“I never dumped the child like he has said. He is the one who took the child after using his prophetic tricks and made the child sick,” she said.

Mrs Gofa ordered Magarachani to stop abusing Runganga in any way and to keep peace with him at all times.