A 50-year-old Zimbabwean national accused of using a forged immigration residence permit and unlawfully staying in Botswana has been granted bail after a magistrate raised concerns over the manner of his detention.
📰 For this and more exclusive stories, read our weekly digital print edition.
Read E-PaperErisha Hwinya was released on Tuesday by Mogoditshane Magistrate Gofaone Morweng, who set bail at P2,000.
As part of his bail conditions, Hwinya must provide four Batswana sureties, each bound for P2,000. He was also ordered to provide a traceable residential address, inform police should he change his place of residence and report to Mogoditshane Police every two weeks.
The court’s decision followed strong criticism of the police handling of Hwinya’s case.
Hwinya was arrested on September 27, but police argued that his continued detention was linked to immigration procedures.
Magistrate Morweng rejected that explanation, questioning why Hwinya had not been deported if the immigration process had been properly followed.
“Why do you want the court to sanitise what you did wrong?” the magistrate asked, pointing out that the law requires an accused person to be brought before a judicial officer within 48 hours.
“I am not going to be party to shambolic decisions,” Morweng said.
The magistrate further stressed that immigration procedures could not be used to bypass provisions of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act.
He warned police against circumventing legal requirements, emphasising that immigration authorities do not have judicial powers.
Hwinya represented himself during the proceedings and is expected to return to court on November 11 for a status hearing.
