A man convicted of burglary in Zimbabwe has asked the judge to send him to prison for life.
The Herald newspaper reports that he was disappointed to receive a sentence of only three years.
In a note read in court by the state prosecutor, Lovemore Manyika, 22, said he wanted to stay in prison for life because conditions there were better than on the streets.
The paper says Manyika was released from prison in April after a previous conviction. He broke into two houses in central Harare in July, stealing two mobile phones, a plasma TV and $US1800 in cash.
Six months of his prison term were suspended if he repays $1,956 by 30 September.
