A woman has been arrested and arraigned for stealing Church’s money.
According to reports, the woman, identified as Bridget Chiedza, 24 was accused and arraigned in court for reportedly stealing the sum of US$118 and R431 from the church’s coffers.
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The woman, who is from Bulawayo’s Cowdray Park suburb, Zimbabwe was sentenced to 12 months in prison after admitting to stealing money from Bethel Church, claiming she used the money to treat her sick mother.
Reports from B-Metro revealed that the suspect committed the crime on August 4, 2023, when she was entrusted with the money by the Church’s secretary, Prisca Moyo.
However, when she was requested to remit the money, she became unreachable, and even blocked the church members who attempted to contact her. The church reported the matter to the police, which led to her arrest.
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I’m court, Chiedza, in tears asked the judge to tamper justice with mercy, adding that she stole the money due to her mother’s illness.
She said;
“My mother was sick in the rural areas, and I needed money for her treatment,” she told Western Commonage magistrate Learnear Khumalo.
The court took her circumstances into account and imposed a conditional sentence. While she received a 12-month prison term, three months were suspended on the condition of staying crime-free for five years. An additional six months were suspended if she completes 210 hours of community service at Cowdray Park Health Services, and the remaining three months were suspended on the condition that she repays the money by November 15, 2024.
