Nkosentsha Khumalo
The place is known for routinely bringing a variety of music artists every weekend and will be jampacked as revellers drink and dance the night away.
Young people from all walks of life throng the hotel for booze and entertainment unbeknowing of lurking dangers which vary from dangerous drugs exchanging hands for money, physical fights and drinking until one drops.
It was an all familiar night at this particular City Hotel when a man from Binga was arrested on the premises, caught red-handed with a pistol in his possession.
The timely intervention by law enforcement agents prevented a potentially hazardous situation, as they reacted and took the suspect swiftly into custody.
While fuller details are still emerging, the incident has triggered concerns over security measures at the hotel and the reasons behind the man’s decision to bring a firearm to the establishment.
The relentless pursuit of justice in this case was spearheaded by Detective Constable Dhlakama Collen, a representative of the State and a duly attested member of the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP).
Dhlakama is stationed at Bulawayo’s Central Investigations Department (CID) Homicide Squad in Bulawayo.
The accused person is Darlington Gama, a male adult whose given address was Gama Homestead, Chabuya Village under Chief Sinamagonde in Binga.
Gama appeared before Bulawayo Magistrate Vakayi Chikwekwe last week to answer for the charges of illegal possession of a firearm.
Prosecutor Dorcas Maphosa told the Court that on the fateful evening of April 29, 2024, detectives from Bulawayo’s CID Homicide department received a tip-off that the accused was allegedly planning to enter the bustling Palace Hotel Club with a firearm.
Driven by the urgency of the tip-off, the detectives wasted no time in responding to the information they had received.
They raced to the Palace Hotel Club, their adrenaline pumping as they prepared to face the unknown.
Upon arrival, they discovered that the club’s vigilant security guard had already apprehended the accused, allowing the detectives to take the suspect into custody and proceed with their investigation.
The investigation uncovered a concealed, unregistered London Birmingham revolver 9.65 mm pistol, bearing the serial number 18696, along with a cache of 7 rounds of ammunition.
Appearance in Court, the accused person was sentenced to 9 months imprisonment.
However, 3 months of the sentence were suspended on condition that he does not commit the same crime involving an unlicensed
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