HARARE teenager Amir Edward Mhaka (19) who is accused of leaking Fifi’s nude pictures has denied ever receiving the images from her or posting them online saying the allegations are just meant to embarrass him.
Fifi’s real name Felisha Muzeya (18) is the daughter of socialite Mai Titi. Mhaka’s lawyer Admire Rubaya said Fifi should instead be arrested for possession and distributing pornographic content as she may have leaked them herself for fame. This came out on Tuesday during his bail application after the allegation that he leaked the images on social media after the collapse of his relationship with Fifi.
Mhaka was not asked to plead to the allegations when he appeared before Harare magistrate Caroline Matanga who remanded him out of custody to May 15 on US$50 bail. His lawyers Admire Rubaya and Malvern Mapako told the court that there is no evidence that he ever received the alleged pictures or distributed them as alleged. They argued that whenever something is shared on social media it comes with a name or handle through which they are shared but there is nothing in this case.
“There is no evidence that he received the nudes. “He actually denies receiving them. “There is also no evidence that he distributed or circulated the pictures online because there ought to be a handle and name under which they were posted. “There is also no evidence that he did it through a cellphone or a laptop. If anything, the complainant should be the one to be arrested for distributing the images for popularity purposes,” Rubaya told the court. Prosecutors Mandirasa Chigumira and Nomsa Kangara alleged that Fifi sent nude images to Mhaka during their relationship on request and when it ended he allegedly began threatening to leak them.
This, they said, forced her to remain friends with Mhaka who was then irked when she got into another relationship. The State says when she was alerted about her nudes online, she identified them as the ones she sent to Mhaka only prompting her to report them. The lawyers said they will be challenging the case on the next hearing which they say does warrant a full trial. “There is nothing to go to trial for here. There is nothing linking him to the offence. “We will be making an application for exception. This is just persecution of an innocent young man,” the lawyer said.
