admin
Gibson Mhaka
A father, torn between love and justice, is forced to make a heart breaking choice. As he steps into the witness box in court, his eyes reflect the depths of his despair.
He must now confront the painful truth and bear witness to the grisly murder, allegedly committed by his son, which sent shockwaves through Cowdray Park suburb in Bulawayo last year in October.
The weight of this ordeal will undoubtedly leave a lasting scar on Phenias Kabanga Sibanda (69)’s heart as he testifies against his son, Dingani Sibanda, who allegedly killed his live-in girlfriend, Simosenkosi Sibanda (27), on 13 October 2024.
Dingani indiscriminately assaulted Simosenkosi before fleeing the scene, leaving the woman’s seven-month-old baby screaming in horror next to her lifeless body.
He was later arrested while waiting at a hiking spot near Mac’s Garage to board a lift to South Africa.
With a heavy heart, the elderly man will be forced to recount the tragic events before the High Court in Bulawayo on 11 November 2024, revealing the horrifying details of his son’s crime.
The trial, which begins almost a year after the murder occurred, will undoubtedly be a painful ordeal for both Dingani and Simosenkosi’s families.
Circumstances that Phenias is expected to share with the court are that on 13 October 2023, at around 8:30 pm, he came home from work only to find the door locked. Simultaneously, he heard dreadful screams from the deceased within, begging for mercy from the accused. Recognising the distressed voice, he immediately understood that the accused was violently attacking the deceased.
Phenias determinedly tried to intervene, appealing to the accused to cease the assault, but to no avail.
At around 9pm, he ran to the Cowdray Park Police Station to report the ongoing physical abuse.
Returning home, he hoped to meet the police patrol unit that had promised to visit the scene.
To his horror, he instead found the deceased’s lifeless body covered with a blanket, with her seven-month-old baby screaming in horror next to her lifeless body, and no police officers were on the scene.
According to court records, Phenias will inform the court that the deceased and the accused had an unhappy marriage marked by recurring arguments.
These arguments were primarily due to the accused’s suspicions of the deceased’s infidelity. They had been married for only three months.
“The police later discovered an orange gas stove pipe that the accused reportedly used to assault the deceased,” the court papers read in part.
On the list of witnesses at the trial are also Simosenkosi’s grandmother, Sithembile Sibanda from Mqokolo Village in St Luke’s, Lupane; Tinashe Bvongodze, a member of the ZRP stationed at Cowdray Park Police Post who attended the murder scene; Assistant Inspector Gilbert Zuvarimwe, stationed at Cowdray Park Police Post and an investigating officer of the matter and Dr S Pesani, a medical practitioner based at United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH), who examined the deceased’s body.
Court records further revealed that Sithembile will tell the court that on 14 October 2023, Phenias sent an emissary with the news of the now deceased’s death.
However, the emissary could not furnish her with enough details surrounding her granddaughter’s death.
Upon inquiring about the details of the tragedy, Phenias informed her that the accused had assaulted her with a strap.
“Witness expressed a profound sense of loss and stated that the now deceased would be sorely missed by the family and relatives. Witness bemoaned the burden of raising the now deceased’s surviving children, a seven-year-old girl, a six-year-old boy, a four-year-old boy and the seven-month-old girl, who had now fallen onto her,” further read the court papers.
She highlighted how the information of the now-deceased’s death initially reached them through social media platforms, which was emotionally disturbing for the family. She said she continues to feel the pain of losing the now-deceased.
Online Reporter