Pedro Alfredo Chongo hides his face under a scarf as he is escorted out
of the High Court in Dar es Salaam yesterday after the drug trafficking
case against him was adjourned.PHOTO | VENANCE NESTORY
In Summary
Observers view this as a move by the Judiciary to fend off accusations that it has been dragging its feet in the war on drugs.
Dar es Salaam. A man swallowed
cocaine with a street value of Sh76 million and smuggled it into
Tanzania from Brazil, the High Court heard yesterday.
Pedro Alfredo Chongo, alias Salum Shaaban, had 90
pellets of cocaine in his stomach when he was arrested at Julius Nyerere
International Airport, shortly after arriving on a Qatar Airways flight
on April 4, 2011, State Attorney Veronica Matikila told Lady Justice
Grace Mwakipesile.
She said the accused defecated the pellets on 13 occasions over five days.
Chongo developed serious abdominal complications
after passing 65 pellets in a police cell at JNIA and was rushed to
Muhimbili National Hospital, where he released 25 pellets.
“A day after his arrest he began complaining of
severe stomach pains. Police took him to Muhimbili Hospital, where he
passed more pellets,” Ms Matikila told the court.
Chongo was discharged from hospital after doctors
confirmed that he no longer had drugs in his stomach. A sample of the
substance passed by Chongo was taken to the Chief Government Chemist for
analysis, and it was confirmed to be cocaine.
The accused was later questioned by officers from
the Police Anti-Drugs Unit, and confessed to drug trafficking, the court
heard.
But Chongo, a resident of Magomeni Mikumi, Dar es
Salaam, denied trafficking in drugs and disowned forms allegedly signed
by him, police and independent witnesses whenever he passed pellets of
cocaine.
Chongo was travelling on a Mozambican passport
when he was arrested. The document, issued in Mozambique, was tendered
in court as an exhibit.
The prosecution has lined up 16 witnesses, while the defence has called up four.
The trial case is among nine high-profile drug
cases the High Court started hearing in Dar es Salaam yesterday. It is a
record number of drug cases to be heard in a single High Court session.
Observers view this as a move by the Judiciary to fend off accusations that it has been dragging its feet in the war on drugs.
In another development, the High Court yesterday issued a
warrant for the arrest of two Pakistanis who jumped bail and fled the
country after they were charged with trafficking in heroin with a street
value of Sh6.2 billion.
Lady Justice Mwakipesile also ordered that the
fugitive’s sureties present themselves before the court and explain the
whereabouts of Abdul Ghan Peer Bux and Shahbaz Malik.
They were arrested in 2010 along with Tanzanians Fred William Chande and Kambi Zubeir Seif, who were present in court yesterday.
Those who stood surety for the fugitives were Mr Mohamed Bahishi Mr Nazar Mohamed Nuru, both residents of Dar es Salaam.
The case had come for preliminary hearing
yesterday when Lady Justice Mwakipesile sought to know where the other
two accused were. Their lawyer, Mr Yasin Memba, told the court he had no
information on their whereabouts.
State Attorney Theophil Mutakyawa said the two had violated bail conditions by not appearing before the court.
“I view of this, the State requests that a warrant
for the arrest of the two accused who jumped bail be issued,” he said.
The case was adjourned to a date to be set by district registrar of the
High Court.
The four were allegedly arrested in 2010 with 180 kilogrammes of heroin and subsequently charged with drug trafficking.
High Court Judge Upendo Msuya later granted a request for bail by the accused’s lawyers.
The decision sparked an outcry by anti-drugs
activists. A number of MPs demanded an explanation in Parliament as to
why the accused were released on bail despite the offence they had been
charged with not being bailable.
Section 148 (5) (a) (ii) of the Criminal Procedure Code forbids the granting of bail to people charged with drug trafficking.
The Director of Public Prosecutions challenged the decision in the Court of Appeal, saying it was contrary to the law.
However, the Court of Appeal upheld the High Court’s decision on the grounds that the prosecution had not stated the value of the drugs and that the charge sheet was defective because the nationality of the accused was not mentioned.
source: The citizen
However, the Court of Appeal upheld the High Court’s decision on the grounds that the prosecution had not stated the value of the drugs and that the charge sheet was defective because the nationality of the accused was not mentioned.
source: The citizen
