Karimu Bushiri and Another vs The United Republic (High Court Criminal Appeal No. 167 of 1989) [1991] TZHC 2007 (16 July 1991)
Judgment
.. RUB.AM.A, J:
HIGH COURT CUii.UNJ1L A.r'.P.l!i.AL NG• 167 JF 1989
ORIGINAL CB.IM!NAL CitSE NO '16 OF 1909 CF THE
DISTRICT c::::u:1.T OF llkILG:::no n,ISTTIICT AT . .lOTIOGORO
BEOR.E: EoJ. NYAM.ASl.NGi1RA RESIDEJ'.T MJ,GISTR.L.TE
K.ilRIMU BUSHIRI & iiNCTHER ••.•••••• .APl.,ELLANT
(ORIGINAL ACCUSEμ)
VEHSUS
THE UNITED HEPUBLIC ••••••••••••.••• RBSPONDENT
( OIUGINAL PRR)
JUDG.M£HT
THABIT RASHID, KIBERENGE SAMSON and KRll,1 BUSHIRI were convicted
of burglary and stealing and each sentenced to c,;nurrent te»ms of five
yeas imprisonment in respect of th8 burglary charge and one yea
imprisoncent in respect of the stealing charge. THAnIT RSHID and KARIM
BUSHIRI have appealed to this cout against the_·,onvictions and mposed
custodial sentences.
..
There i:a sufficient evidence of the faot tho.t the house of Hellen
llusimbi (.PW{) v1as on the. night of 6th Janu.;;.r.v-' 19.:..-9 burgled and seve:wal
items stolen fromthe house. There is also suffjcient evidence tha eome
of these stolen goods were recovered froi;:i vari(-US householde on ilhe day
following the burglary i.e. 7th January, 19J9•
The rosecution case against THA:i3!T Ill.SHIT is that he had tG.?geilhe,
with ELIHUR!ThU Dli.WSCm, a co-accused the.t had. not been convicted, been
.identified by .DAi'¼OS L' .... 'l.1ViI (2W2) as the peopli. that had br0ken-.i-.o-hei>
roo;n and de..aanded money f'rom him (.PW2) and td:1:;r people in the room.
Also from Tli.ABIT RJi.SiIID was recovered on 7th ··-:J.nuary, 1991 recently silolGJl _
items which were positively identified by HEL:,..EN i.i.USHU.l3I (PWI) as h&viJ'.'g-·
been amongst her stolen items. These were a siit case whih b0re a bag
with her name on it, a bicycle NG.41769 wal:e .:i.u.bassador and a gown
whose belt remained in :possession of PWI-. IIe. TiL:i.BIT Ri1.SIIID fu:iriJher
led the police to the house of Elihuruilla d. The proEecution evidence against
KARIM BUSHit.I is that from his house were :,:·e-Jovered a day following the
burglary some of the things that had been stolen from the burgled houawson whom he.had stated had
.·
SOfil6 ·of the st0len items. From this house se·.rer<il recently stolen items
from the hose of PWI were recovere
of FWI. These were one cover of an electric cooker one piee of shoe
(having left onB behind which was produced ln court) and one recorded
casstte bearing the nafile of PWI. Neither Thabit Rashid n6r Karim Bushir
ta•e reasonable explanation as to how thy had co □ e to be in possession
of the recently stolen goods.
2
Miss Mu.nisi, learned State ttorney auported the conviction~
entered against the appellants in r,espect of the burglary and stealing
oharges and the iuposed custodial sentences. She drew the attention of
the court to the very strong .evid£mce against the appellants. I accept
the submission as valid. I accept the evidence of PW2 that Thabit Rashid
was one of the two burglars that hed entered the room he was·in on the
material night and had demanded money ftom him and other-children in the
room. I ~ccept the evidence of 2W2 that there was light in the room and
tha"t1 Thabit Rashid and his collea8Ue who was surprisingly acquitted by
.,,,, the trial oou!:l"t had been in the r.·Olll of .Piv2 for long enough time to facilitate
I
correct identification of him the unfavourable surrcundings -·i.e. violence
and theft notwithstanding. I further accept the evidGnce of identification
of PWI that some of her ·stolen items_ had been recovered from the house of
Thabi t Rashid,. The ~iscovery ··was made a day followh:g the burglary and
the stealing ot the found items. Thabit frashid couli ive no reasonable
explanation as. to how he· had come t0 possess these items The convi&tion
of the appellant was proper. His appeal is acpordin3ly dismi,ed. Likewise,
'
Kari Bushir could offer no reasonable explanation ~s to how he had come
·fo p6ssess so much of recently stolen property so recently stolen from_ PVlI.
He could nqt have boaght ju.st a shoe! I see nJ illerit in this appeal which
,!
is aoeordingly dismissed. I would in fact have ir:ipcsed· much stiffer .sentences
for the committed off-ences - the appellants were eztreraely lucky to have
got away with sttch light se·ntences.
In totality, the appeals are &isuiiss-::d in their enti vety.
Coram - RUD.ilMl ', J
Mr. Komba, S.A. for liepublic
Appellants absent
Judgment delivered.
DltR ES SALiUi.J.\1
16th July, 1991".
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Y.AHYil. RUB-AM.il.
JUDGE
16/7/91
Q,)
Yi:LHYA RU1}\MA
JUDGE
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