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THEY say a bad workman blames his tools — and in this case, a 23-year-old man went on a violent rampage after blaming one of two brothers for his struggling business!
Lizwelenkosi Mpofu from Northend shocked the court when he pleaded guilty to assault and malicious damage to property before Bulawayo magistrate Vimbai Chirai.
The court heard that the drama exploded on 13 March at around 7pm at the corner of Fife Street and Fifth Avenue.
Prosecutor Sibusisiwe Sithole said Mpofu lost his cool and attacked Tinarwo Mkanga in a fit of rage.
He allegedly struck him on the back with a half-brick before biting his finger!
All hell broke loose over a missing SIM card.
Mkanga told the court he had approached Mpofu’s stall to ask about something, but immediately noticed he was in a bad mood.
“I suggested he use a torch to look for his SIM card, but he became aggressive and threatened me,” he said.
Moments later, violence erupted! But the chaos didn’t end there.
Mpofu then turned his anger on another man, Method Chiremba, smashing his car windscreen with a stone.
The value of the damaged windscreen was US$85.
In his defence, Mpofu tried to shift the blame.
He claimed Mkanga started the fight and that Chiremba grabbed him by the neck while trying to intervene.
“I was aiming for him, not the car,” Mpofu told the court.
But the damage was already done.
Mpofu has been anxiously waiting behind bars, with sentencing set for 20 March.
Online Reporter