12 years for killing son

Paidamoyo Bore

THE High Court has sentenced a woman, who threw her four-year-old son into Mazowe River in May last year, resulting in his death, to 12 years in prison.

The court ruled that Trish Machado committed the crime with actual intent but felt she deserved a second chance due to her troubled history.

High Court judge, Justice Esther Muremba, said had she been older, a sentence of, at least 20 years, would have been appropriate.

However, her immaturity and difficult upbringing were taken into account.

Machado was impregnated when she was 17 and killed her son when she was 21.

During the trial, Machado claimed to have suicidal tendencies, but the court found her claims to be false. The prosecutor revealed that Machado was married when she committed the offence, and her husband had accepted her son and treated him well.

Justice Muremba said: “The reduced sentence is also in light of the fact that the accused is a person who has had a difficult life growing up. Life has generally been cruel to her. We will impose a sentence that should enable the accused to get rehabilitated.”

When the judge asked Machado why she didn’t throw herself into the river, at the same time she threw her son, she said the river was shallow. The State said sometime in May last year, Machado went to Mazowe River Bridge to meet a woman, who wanted to help her secure a job.