Online Reporter
Fairness Moyana in Hwange
A BINGA man has been sentenced to 44 years in prison after he and his sibling fatally struck their 89-year-old grandfather with an axe before setting his body on fire to conceal their crime.
Events Ncube (31) and Keylop Ncube (22), from Nzungwana 5, Kayongolo under Chief Pashu in Lusulu, Binga, had earlier stolen their late grandfather Sibusisiwe Dube’s heifer, which they sold for $190, sharing the proceeds.
The siblings appeared before Bulawayo High Court Judge, Justice Nokuthula Moyo, facing charges of murder, malicious damage to property, and stock theft.
Following a full trial, Events was convicted and sentenced to a total of 44 years imprisonment after being found guilty on the charges: 25 years for murder, 10 years for malicious damage to property, and nine years for stock theft.
However, his sibling, Keylop, was acquitted on all counts after a “defence of compulsion” was sustained.
This legal defence means that the defendant successfully proved they were coerced or forced into committing the crime, and as a result, are not held criminally responsible.
The State’s case is that on April 1, 2024, at around 7:00 pm, the siblings and their grandfather were at Maphosa Business Centre.
The deceased was in the company of Tapson Munsaka, and they shared beer while the brothers also drank at the same business centre.
At around 7:00pm, the deceased left the business centre and was followed by the two brothers, who attacked him with an axe, fatally striking him on the head.
They then transported his body from the scene in a scotch cart, placing it in his kitchen hut before setting it on fire.
The body, which had been burnt beyond recognition, was discovered the following morning by Mark Ncube, who then made a report to the police.
Ncube testified in court that he was unaware of any crime when the two brothers approached him asking to use his scotch cart to ferry their bags of cement.
“On April 2, at around 9:30am, Keylop came to my homestead to report that the deceased’s kitchen hut was on fire. I asked about his whereabouts and was told by him that he may have been burnt in the fire.
“We then went to the homestead and found the house on fire with the roof having caved in. I went into the kitchen hut and noticed the deceased’s body lying on the floor, still on fire,” Ncube said.
He added that he asked Keylop to call neighbours and relatives before asking him to explain what had happened at around 2:00 am.
Keylop then broke down and confessed, implicating his elder brother, Events, and revealed that they had previously stolen and sold their deceased grandfather’s heifer at Kayongolo Business Centre.
