HARARE – Musician Kudakwashe Hombarume, popularly known as Chillmaster, has been banned from driving for nine months after the High Court overturned a controversial ruling that had spared him jail despite causing a fatal crash.
The 24-year-old unlicensed singer admitted he was speeding at 100 km/h in a 60 km/h zone when he rammed his Honda Shuttle into 46-year-old Custon Charumbira in April, killing him instantly.
A Mbare magistrate, Tatenda Mukurunge, initially sentenced him to community service after he compensated the victim’s family and covered funeral expenses. But the High Court condemned the ruling as “outrageous.”
“The facts of this case reveal a serious breach of road safety regulations… Contrary to a finding of ordinary negligence, the facts disclose gross negligence,” Justice Mary Zimba Dube said.
She added: “A victim impact statement cannot trump the interests of justice. Courts should not allow offenders to buy themselves out of a custodial sentence simply because they can pay compensation.”
With road deaths rising sharply in Zimbabwe, Justice Dube said the judiciary had a duty to send “a strong warning to offenders who drive without licences resulting in fatalities.”
The matter was remitted to Mukurunge, who in an adjusted ruling imposed the nine-month driving ban — the minimum punishment the High Court said was required.
“The aggravating features of this case do not justify community service,” Justice Dube ruled. “Community service imposed in circumstances such as these has the effect of trivialising the offence of culpable homicide arising from road traffic accidents.”
