A Zimbabwean magistrate on Tuesday found a New York Times freelance reporter guilty of assisting two foreign journalists to illegally enter and report from the country last year.
Magistrate Mark Nzira sentenced Jeffrey Moyo to a two-year suspended sentence and fine him US$615 for allegedly abetting the contravention of Zimbabwe’s immigration law when he helped two South African-based New York Times journalists, Christina Goldbaum and João Silva, to enter Zimbabwe in May 2021 for a week-long assignment.
He is accused of fraudulently obtaining press cards for the two from the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC), which they used to obtain visas when they arrived in the country on May 5.
The visas were later cancelled amid allegations that the ZMC accreditations upon which they were granted were fraudulent.
JN/APA