HARARE — A judge on Monday acquitted Roy Bennett, a top aide to Zimbabwe's prime minister, in an alleged plot to overthrow President Robert Mugabe, ending a trial that had threatened the fragile unity government.
"Having carefully considered the facts, I come to the conclusion that the state has failed to prove a prima facie case. The accused is accordingly found not guilty," said Judge Chinembiri Bhunu.
Prosecutor Chris Mutangadura told AFP that the state would not appeal.
"The court has made its ruling, we are not going to appeal," said Mutangadura.
Bennett, a 53-year-old former white farmer, was Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's pick for deputy agriculture minister in the year-old unity government.
Bennett was arrested in February 2009, shortly before he was to be sworn in, over terror charges stemming from accusations that he had funded a plot to topple Mugabe four years ago.
Bennett welcomed the decision, as his supporters who packed the gallery applauded and hugged him.
"This is welcome. One hopes we will now move into an era of justice and rule of law," Bennett told AFP outside the court.
"Today I am going to have a proper sleep," he added in the local Shona language.
Following the verdict, Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change called for Bennett to take office this week.
"His acquittal leaves the enemies of real change with no excuse whatsoever as to why Honorable Bennett cannot be allowed to serve his country," the party said in a statement.
"This week, Zimbabweans expect the swearing-in of their deputy minister of agriculture".
Mugabe has said Bennett must be cleared by the court before taking up the post.
The plot had already been discredited by a court in an earlier case, making Bennett's trial a major source of conflict in the power-sharing deal between Mugabe and Tsvangirai.
In October 2009, Tsvangirai boycotted the unity government, labelling Mugabe's camp "dishonest and unreliable", partly over the Bennett case.
Bennett's co-accused in the treason case, Giles Mutseyekwa, is now home affairs minister in Zimbabwe's power-sharing government, after being acquitted of similar charges in 2006.
The state's case was largely based on a video in which arms dealer Peter Hitschmann, who was initially charged with Bennett, appears to identify weapons meant for a plot against Mugabe.
But Hitschmann told the court on January 14 that he had been tortured into making the video while held at police stations and army barracks.
Hitschmann, a former policeman, was convicted in 2006 of a lesser charge of illegal possession of firearms.
The judge praised the efforts of prosecutors in a case that was led by Attorney General Johannes Tomana, whose unilateral appointment by Mugabe was another source of tension in the government.
"I must commend the state for having put up a brave fight under very difficult circumstances in defence and preservation of a constitutionally elected government," said Bhunu.
"We however operate in an adversarial legal system where a criminal trial is akin to a contest, where the judge and assessors are merely referees or umpires," said the judge.
Bennett had enjoyed the support of the MDC throughout his trial, with ordinary members filling the court each time he made an appearance.
AFP
