D-day for top cop over leaked exam paper

A SENIOR police officer, accused of leaking a law exam paper at the University of Zimbabwe (UZ), is back in court today for his bail hearing.

Superintendent Vigai Maunganidze, the provincial intelligence officer for Harare, initially appeared in court over the weekend.

He appeared again yesterday where his application, refusing to be placed on remand, failed.

Presiding magistrate, Tranos Utahwashe, dismissed the application, saying there is reasonable suspicion that a crime was committed.

This warranted him being placed on remand leading to the bail application.

The court heard that on October 31, Supt Maunganidze obtained a UZ Faculty of Law examination paper of Administrative and Local Government Law for second-year students.

The paper was supposed to be written on November 3 and he was among students sitting for the exam.

It is alleged that he shared the paper with Farai Madombi, a third-year Bachelor of Substantive Laws at UZ, via WhatsApp.

On November 1, Madombi sat for his Company Law exam in the afternoon.

During the exam, some students were caught cheating and were disqualified.

It is alleged that after the exam, Madombi’s classmate, Tafadzwa Mugwadi, approached him and started discussing the exam paper they had written.

Mugwadi started complaining about people who cheat in exams and revealed plans to approach the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development to expose them.

Madombi, who had the leaked the Administrative and Local Government Law BLS204 exam paper, then forwarded the paper Mugwadi.

Mugwadi immediately notified the UZ authorities, who confirmed the paper as the one to be written by second-year students on November 3.

The university then issued a notice canceling the exams.

Ephraim Zinyandu appeared for the State