COURT ORDERS BACEDE TO GIVE ACCOUNTS OF 8 WARDERS

MBABANE - The court has issued an order compelling incarcerated MP Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza and his company to furnish the police with details of accounts of eight officers from His Majesty’s Correctional Services held with Baceth Investments.

Mabuza is the owner of Baceth Hardware which has branches across all regions of the country.  Baceth Investments is one of the hardware stores which allow customers to open accounts with them for purposes of purchasing building material. The eight officers are subject to the investigation that has been instituted by the police pertaining to the smuggling of two cellphones which were found in Mabuza’s possession. The ranks of the officers, who are reportedly all stationed in Matsapha, were not stated in the court order that was issued at the Manzini Magistrates Court. According to the order, the officers are Thokozani Mhlanga, Lucky Dludlu, Lasco Leandry, Johannes Tsabedze, Tom Bongwe, Mangaliso Dlamini, Neliswa Dlamini and Bheki Magagula.

Details

The order comes after the police moved an application in terms of Section 49 bis (1) of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act 67/1938. In the application for the order, the court was informed that the documents were needed as part of criminal investigations into the circumstances surrounding smuggling of cellphones. Section 49 (1) provides that: “If upon application to the court by a police officer the court is satisfied that any books of account, document, records or thing which is in possession of any person including a company, bank or other financial  institution is necessarily required in connection with  any criminal investigations by the  police, the court shall make an order requiring that person, company, bank or financial institution to produce such book, document, records or things to the police subject to such conditions as the court may impose.” In the order, the court said it was satisfied on the basis of an application made to it that in terms of Section 49 of the Act, Mabuza’s company had in its possession accounts held by the eight officers.

The court further highlighted that it was satisfied that the documents or accounts were necessarily required in connection with the criminal investigations surrounding the smuggling of the cellphones into the Matsapha Maximum Prison. “You are herby ordered to furnish the applicant (Royal Eswatini Police Service) with original copies of these documents and further informed that should you refuse or fail to comply with this order without any reasonable excuse or proof of which shall be on you, you shall be liable to prosecution in terms of Subsection (2) of the cited Act,” reads part of the court order. Subsection(2) of the Act states that: “Any person who, without reasonable excuse, proof of which shall be on him, refuses or fails to comply with an order of court under Subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding E10 000 or to imprisonment not exceeding five years or both.” The order, which was served to Mabuza in prison, is dated January 6, 2022.
On December 10, 2021, Mabuza was found with two cellphones inside the Matsapha Maximum Prison.  

Gadgets

The legislator was reportedly found with the gadgets during a random search, which was conducted by HMCS officers inside the prison.  It is said the officers then confiscated the cellphones and the matter was reported to the management and  this led to the office of the commissioner general appointing a select team to probe how the gadgets got to Mabuza. The findings of the task team will determine who will be charged for the offence as cellphones are prohibited within the area designated for inmates.
Just after the discovery of the cellphones, there was a brief investigation which was conducted by the Correctional facility warders, wherein there were allegations that the gadgets were smuggled into the facility allegedly by some of the people who frequently visited Mabuza. There were also suspicions that the MP allegedly got assistance from some of the officers.

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