Serving jail sentence does not necessarily protect your assets against confiscation
A recent High Court judgment in Zimbabwe clarifies that serving a prison sentence does not exempt an offender from the confiscation of assets to recover proceeds of crime. The court ruled that even lawfully acquired property can be seized if it matches the value of stolen funds.
Why it matters
This ruling sets a significant legal precedent regarding the recovery of criminal proceeds and the limits of 'paying one's debt to society' through incarceration alone.
MANY people believe that once they have served a prison sentence, they have paid their debt to society and the matter is over.
However, a recent High Court judgment shows that this is not always the case. Even after completing a prison sentence, an offender may still lose lawfully- acquired property if it is confiscated to recover the value of the proceeds of crime.
In Prosecutor-General v Phillip Tendenedzai HH 76-25, the respondent was convicted of stealing US$13,147 belonging to his employer. The trial court sentenced him to imprisonment, with part of the sentence suspended on condition that he restituted the complainant by repaying the stolen money before a specified date. Instead of making restitution, he elected to serve the additional prison sentence.
Many would assume that once he completed his prison term, the matter was over. It was not.
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