Wife helping husband evade justice

I am a self-employed woman living in Mtwara. My husband is a truck driver for an oil marketing company, and he spends most of his time travelling due to the nature of his job. One day, he came home with some injuries and informed me that he had been in an accident on the highway. I pleaded with him to go to the hospital, but he chose instead to stay at home under my care. Two days later, an unknown person sent me a text saying, ‘you are keeping a thief at home.’ I told my husband about this text, and to my surprise, he confessed that he and some colleagues had stolen a consignment of oil under the pretext of an accident. He asked me to remain silent, as it is my duty to protect him as a wife. I think the police are investigating the accident, and I fear the crime will eventually be discovered, leading to my being taken in by the police along with my husband. Please advise me on my situation.
JM, Mtwara

This is a difficult situation, and we understand your concerns. Legally, in Tanzania, if you knowingly conceal a person’s crime or fail to report it, you could be considered an accessory after the fact, which may result in legal action against you. According to section 387 of the Penal Code, a person who receives or assists another who is, to his knowledge, guilty of an offence, in order to enable him to escape punishment, is an accessory after the fact of the offence. However, a wife does not become an accessory after the fact to an offence of which her husband is guilty by receiving or assisting him in order to enable him to escape punishment; or by receiving or assisting, in her husband’s presence and by his authority, another person who is guilty of an offence in the commission of which her husband has taken part, in order to enable that other person to escape punishment; nor does a husband become accessory after the, fact to an offence of which his wife is guilty by receiving or assisting her in order to enable her to escape punishment.

Therefore, an accessory after the fact is someone who knowingly helps a person guilty of a crime evade punishment. However, generally spouses are exempt from being labelled accessories after the fact when assisting their partner, or someone their partner is involved with, in escaping justice. A lawyer can guide you on how to handle this situation while protecting your rights.