19870909 TZHC Mwanza

lo IW THE HIGH GCURT CF TA~Z~NIA AT MtiA\TZA APPELLATE JURISDICTIOW HIGH CCURT ORIMPTAL APPEAL llTQ. 38 OF 1987 (ORIGP.1AL ORIMI1'-TJ\L CASE ~.ro. 278 OF 1986 OF Ttllil DISTRICT COURT OF MUSOMA DISTRICT AT MUSCMA - Bi!lli'ORE A. i?. L. MUYl\.'IITJAH, ESQ., DISTRICT M/1.GISTR/\.T.El) VITAL IS s/o MTET\TGA ••••••••••••••••••••• ~ •••••••••••••••••••• APPELLANT VERSUS THE U\lITED R@UBLIC •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • .llillSP01\TD:EN"T JUDGME!ITT MOSHI 2 J.: In :the district ccurt cf Muscma, the app,2llant, Vi talisi s/o Mtenga, was ch.:ugeM with Steal inJ a table clock make "CR!i.BA" value~ at Shs. 5, 000/::::. belc'1.Jing tr· Amosi Mtaraga ra Chirangi at Kamu:nyon 6 e area, Muscma M istrict. He was ccnvict.e~ cf Recei~ing stclen property c/s 311(1) an~ ( 2) c,f th.e Penal Cc~e, ann sentenceM to two year's impriscljT)ent. He Wf\S aggrieveM, ~nM hence this appeal. Mr. Scngr,ro, le.<lrneM st-'lte attorney, appeareM fer the Republic in_ this Appeal, .1t1hereas the 1:!.ppellant was, by his own chr.ic_e, absent ~n~ unrepresente~. The material facts, upc-n which the trial court baseM its ~ecision, were brief ann straight fcrwar~. Sometime in September, 1985 Yarious items, incluMing the relevant table clock (Exh.Pl), disappeareM from the house of Amosi Mtaragara Chirangi (PWlll) at the h3n,;s c•f person er parsons unknc-wn. PWlll alerted varicus .. watch repairers in town, incluMing Bakari Maycmbc (PWll), who harl rapaire,; the watch before. On 26/1/86 the appellant_sent the watch (Exh.Pl) to BWll for repair. PWll immeMiately recognized_it. He t0lM the appellant to go for it the next rlay. Meanwhile he notifieA PWlll and the police (fWl)o On th~ following Aay (27-1-86) the wa:toh was ccllecte.:i, anA the appellant was hel,;, an~ subsequently charge,;~ In his Aefence at the trial, the appella~t claimeA tc have on 16/8/85 receiverl the watch (Exh.Pl) from one Hamisi Machumu. of Buhare . area as seouri ty, for Shs. 900/c bcrroweA by that person frr:•m him., It _ was in ~riting (Exh.nl). The_~ppellant then approa~hed PWlll anA aske,; fer parM0n for h'3.Ving receiverl_ his s:t0len-w-3tch, anA prcmiseM to· proA~ce the thief, Hamisi Machumu... He failed to Ao so~ and :then te-ck .the watch tc PWll fer repair insteaA. The story then proo~eAeA as alreaMy tolA. ' -!' ., 2 In ccnvicting the appellant, the learneA rlistrict magistrate apparently believen the appellant's str:ry that he raoeive~ the a],cck frcm Hamisi Machumu, but fcunA t.hat the appellant reoaive~ an~ ;retaine~ it kncwing or having reascn to believe_the same to have been st0len. On the weight of the evi~enoe on reocrrl; I am unable to fault that rleoisicn. The appellant himself tel~ PWlll that much. He knew that the ol0ok was PWlll 's stol.en prcperty. He ~ i~ not even seek :tc return it to PWlll. Instear!, he un~ertcok its rep3ir as if it belcngerl tchf1!1• He were bent en retaining it, notwithetanAing that he knew it ha~ been stclen frdn PWlll. It R.pp-aars tc the le4rneA st:lte attr.rney that this appeal is -~evciA of merit-. 1-li:th respect, I am firmly <::£ the s'lme: view, I am satisfi.eA; an~ hereby hclr!, that the appellant was~ on the eviAenoa, pr,perl;y: ocnvicterl, The sentenoe passer! wis, in the ciroumstanoes, · fair anrl reascn~ble. It o~nnot justifiably be Aisturbe~.- Fcr the fcregoing resscns, this appeal must be, an~ it is hereby, rlismisse~ in its entirety. // ___'\ M L __ B. ?. MOSHI JUDGE. - Absent, unrepresented, Mr. MapunAa • ..... _____ ..., 1111