Inside the Prison Transfers: Why Marima and Two Others Ended Up at Khami Maximum Prison

Gweru — The reported transfer of convicted Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS) officer and ZANU PF Ziyaphapha  District Youth Chairperson, Isheanesu Benjamin Marima (30) and two of his convicted accomplices from Whawha Medium Prison to Khami Maximum Prison has raised fresh questions on developments behind prison walls following the High Court's refusal to grant them bail pending appeal.  

Sources within Khami Prison, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to protocol, say Marima and his two undisclosed accomplicies were transferred from Whawha Medium Prison, just outside Gweru, to Khami Maximum Prison in Bulawayo on 11 July 2026.

The transfer covered 218 kilometres by road and came shortly after the High Court dismissed the trio's applications for bail pending appeal against both conviction and sentence.

One source alleged that prison authorities decided to relocate the three inmates after Marima reportedly began exhibiting behaviour that raised concerns among prison officials.

"After the High Court dismissed their applications for bail pending appeal, Marima allegedly started showing signs that concerned prison authorities. The decision was then taken to transfer him together with the other two convicted inmates to Khami Maximum Prison," the source said.

The source further alleged that while prison transfers are ordinarily administrative decisions made by the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services, the relocation may have been influenced by a combination of security, operational and inmate management considerations, as well as the reported concerns surrounding Marima's behaviour.

However, the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services has not publicly explained the reasons for the transfer.

Efforts to obtain official comment from ZPCS were unsuccessful by the time of publication.

The latest relocation marks the second prison transfer involving the three convicts since they were sentenced by the Gokwe Magistrates' Court.

Immediately after sentencing, Marima and two of his accomplices, Collin Masawi (44)  and Edwin Chinogwa (33) were transferred from Gokwe Prison to Whawha Medium Prison.

At the time, prison sources cited security considerations and the high-profile nature of the cases as reasons for the move.

The trio was convicted in one of two criminal matters arising from violent incidents that occurred during the Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3 public hearings in Gokwe.

In the first matter, Gokwe Magistrate Stanford Mambanje convicted Marima, Masawi and Chinogwa of abducting and torturing Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Law and Order Detective Constable Bester Tati while he was carrying out official police duties.

The Magistrate sentenced each of the three to seven years' imprisonment, suspending one year on condition of good behaviour, leaving an effective six-year custodial sentence.

In delivering judgment, Magistrate Mambanje described the offences as serious acts of organised violence against a law enforcement officer and said a custodial sentence was necessary to punish the offenders and deter similar conduct.

Marima was also among seven people convicted in a separate case involving the kidnapping and assault of commuter omnibus operator Calisto Muzofa.

The court heard that Muzofa was allegedly abducted and assaulted after refusing to pay an unlawful rank affiliation fee.
In that matter, the accused persons were each sentenced to four years' imprisonment, with one year suspended on condition of good behaviour.

Following their convictions, the accused appealed against both conviction and sentence.

Court records show that in the commuter omnibus kidnapping case, four of the convicted persons were granted bail pending appeal by the High Court.

Marima, however, together with Masawi and Chinogwa, remained in custody after their applications for bail pending appeal were dismissed.

They continue serving their prison terms while awaiting the determination of their appeals.

Legal practitioners note that the refusal of bail pending appeal generally indicates that the court was not persuaded that exceptional circumstances existed to justify release before the appeal is heard.

However, they say dismissal of bail does not determine the merits of the appeal itself, which will be decided separately by the appellate court.