Tendai Biti, a prominent Zimbabwean opposition figure and former finance minister, has been fined $300 (£236) and handed a six-month suspended jail sentence after being found guilty of verbal assault by a magistrate.
The court ruled that Biti had engaged in a verbal altercation with a Russian businesswoman, Tatiana Aleshina, in 2020.
Throughout the lengthy four-year trial, witnesses testified that Tendai Biti, a respected lawyer, approached Aleshina following a court hearing in 2020, where he allegedly called her ‘stupid’ and gestured in a manner perceived as threatening.
Despite Biti’s denial of the accusation and argument that the charge lacked validity, the court rendered its decision.
Biti’s legal representative, Alec Muchadehama, expressed disappointment with the sentence but indicated plans to appeal both the charge and conviction.
The verdict marks a legal setback for Biti, highlighting ongoing tensions within Zimbabwe’s political landscape.