Popular music producers DJ Fantan and Levelz of Chillspot Records have been sentenced to 12 months in prison for hosting a musical bash in Mbare on New Year’s Eve. The two will spend 6 months in prison after the court suspended 6 months from their sentence.
DJ Fantan, real name Arnold Kamudyariwa (33), and Levelz, real name Tafadzwa Kadzimwe (31) together with Simbarashe “Dhama” Chanachimwe (27) were found guilty of ‘convening a public gathering during a national lockdown’ in contravention of Statutory Instrument 77 of 2020 of the COVID-19 regulations for hosting the musical bash.
When the three appeared before Harare Magistrate Vongai Guwuriro, they did not dispute the allegations and readily pleaded guilty to the charge. The court then convicted them on their own plea.
In passing sentence, Magistrate Guwuriro said that she had taken into account that the three had not wasted the court’s time by pleading guilty to the charges.
Despite this, she sentenced DJ Fantan, Levels and Dhama to 12 months in prison. The prosecutor Michael Reza had asked for the court to impose a custodial sentence of one year in jail as well as a fine of $400,000 (approximately US$5 000 using the official exchange rate).
However, The magistrate suspended 6 months on condition of good behaviour leaving the trio to serve an effective six months in prison. Guwuriro went on to say that she could not commute the remaining 6 months to community service because Chief Justice Luke Malaba had issued an order suspending community service for the next 30 days due to the Covid-19 national lockdown.
The magistrate also said that she could not fine the three in lieu of a custodial sentence as this would trivialise the crime the three had committed.
DJ Fantan handed himself over to the police after ZRP national spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi announced that the police had launched a manhunt for him. This was after the police arrested 52 people for taking part in and organising a Passa Passa on 31 December 2020, which was attended by thousands of youths in Mbare.
Levels was arrested when he brought lunch to his colleague, DJ Fantan at the police cells.-iharare
