Seven charged with armed robbery, kidnapping
Seven men who were charged with armed robbery and abduction of a woman shortly before the charges against them were read at the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court on October 31, 2023. PHOTO | HADIJA JUMANNE
What you need to know:
- The accused allegedly abducted Han Nooh Hussein and forced her to go to Mbezi Beach area, and secretly and wrongfully confined her for four days
Dar es Salaam. Seven people were yesterday charged in a Dar es Salaam court with armed robbery and abducting a woman, Han Nooh Hussein, for purposes of confinement.
The suspects were Assad Abdulrasur (43) a resident of Msasaani Village; Fahad Mussa (32), a resident of Airport, Dodoma; Nathan Jothan (27) a resident of Sinza; and Nicolas Nilahi (39), a resident of Wazo Hill.
Others were Fredu Chahoza (49), a resident of Dodoma; Ifan Saleh (41), a resident of Kisemvule; and Hassan Nur (39), a resident of Msasani Village A.
The accused were arraigned at the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court.
State Attorney Neema Moshi told the court presiding Resident Magistrate, Aaron Lyamuya, that on October 16, 2023, in the Msasani Beach area, the accused allegedly stole an iPhone worth Sh3.5 million, one pair of eyeglasses worth Sh300,000, one pair of gold earrings worth Sh500,000, and a wristwatch worth $120.
They also allegedly stole a wallet containing Sh100,000 in cash, all belonging to Han Nooh Hussein. The court heard that the defendants threatened Ms Hussein with a Glock 19 pistol to facilitate the robbery.
They were also charged with the abduction of Ms Hussein. It was alleged that on the same day, the accused abducted the woman in the Msasani Beach area.
“The accused did use force to compel Han Nooh Hussein to go to Ujirani Street, Mbezi Beach area in Kinondo-ni District, and secretly and wrongfully confined her in the house of one Hhaidary Kaazi Waziri for four days,” Ms Moshi told the court.
The accused shrugged off the charges. They are remanded in custody because the case facing them is unbailable.
The prosecution informed the court that investigations were still going on and asked the court to set another date for a preliminary hearing.
The suspects, through their lawyers, Dismas Raphael and William Mkumbo, informed the court that they would want to engage in plea bargaining arrangement with the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to resolve the matter.
“In line with the case facing the suspects, may we request that instead of scheduling the case for mention after 14 days, let the case come up for mention just a few days from today, preferably November 7, 2023. We are advancing the request because we want to get in touch with the DPP for a possible plea bargaining arrangement,” the lawyers said.
Responding, Ms Moshi asked the suspects to follow the procedures, including writing a letter to the Office of the DPP, seeking to end the case under the plea bargaining arrangement.
Magistrate Lyamuya adjourned the case to November 7, 2023. On that date, the court will be briefed on the plea bargaining arrangement sought by the defending attorneys.
Earlier, the Commander for the Dar es Salaam Police Zone, Mr Muliro Jumanne, told journalists in the city that the woman was reportedly kidnapped on October 16, 2023, at around 10am while driving a Toyota Rav 4 at Msasani Village.
On that day, he said, several armed men surrounded the woman’s car and took her to Ujirani Street in the Mbezi Beach area.
Having kidnapped her, the armed men held the woman in captivity for four consecutive days, during which they kept demanding $3.5 million from her father in ransom.
“After receiving the information, the Police Force made a scientific follow-up on the matter, whereby on October 19, we managed to set the victim free from her abductors and arrested the suspects who were still together and in possession of the vehicle that she was driving on her fateful day,” said Mr Jumanne, adding that the suspects were also found in possession of an Austrian-made Pistol Glock 19 and four bullets.
