HARARE – Seventh Day Adventist evangelist Sam Marufu walked out of court a free man after prosecutors halted cyberbullying proceedings against him, saying investigators must first prove he owns the Facebook account that allegedly published defamatory posts targeting three female church members.
The case, which was expected to proceed before the Harare Magistrates’ Court, was referred back to police for further investigations after prosecutors raised concerns over the available digital evidence.
Prosecutors want police to obtain information from Meta, the parent company of Facebook, confirming that the account used to publish the disputed posts belongs to Marufu and that he was the person who uploaded the content.
Marufu, through his lawyer Admire Rubaya, has maintained that the complainants must prove he was responsible for the posts.
The evangelist was arrested after Rotina Mafume Musara, Alasia Mbiriri and Perseverance Muzeya, all members of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, accused him of cyberbullying and damaging their reputations through social media.
According to the allegations, the three women recorded a video of themselves preparing to preach, which was later shared on a Facebook page allegedly linked to Marufu with a caption they considered insulting and intended to ridicule them.
The post reportedly attracted numerous negative comments, prompting the women to report the matter to Marlborough Police Station.
Police are now expected to carry out further investigations before any decision is made on whether to revive the prosecution.
The development means Marufu remains free while investigators seek forensic evidence linking him to the Facebook account and the alleged posts before the matter can proceed in court.
