Vusumuzi Dube
Moreblessing Ncube
BULAWAYO streets were thrown into panic after a schoolboy brawl exploded into savage violence leaving one pupil bloodied and another facing jail time.
A 17-year-old pupil (name withheld for ethical reasons), was suspended after allegedly cracking a fellow pupil on the head with an iron bar in a terrifying after school clash involving learners from Founders High School.
The pupil appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Casmila Madzikatire and was slapped with a six month prison sentence, wholly suspended for five years, after being convicted of assault.
Prosecutor Sibusisiwe Sithole told the court that the chaos unfolded on October 24, 2025 around 3PM as pupils walked home along Plumtree Road near Southwold shops.
What began as a confrontation between rival school groups quickly turned ugly. During the melee, another Founders pupil (name withheld) tried to flee.
That was when the first pupil allegedly struck.
Armed with an iron bar, he smashed the fleeing pupil, sending him crashing to the ground as other horrified pupils screamed for help.
Bleeding heavily, the pupil who had been hit was given first aid by fellow learners before being rushed to Donnington Police station. He suffered a deep head wound and was referred to hospital for further treatment.
The violent scenes have reopened painful memories of a deadly 2023 school gang clash that rocked Bulawayo.
In that earlier horror, a Form Four pupil from Founders High lost his life after being stabbed by a 16-year-old learner from Hamilton High School during suspected gang violence.
The deceased had reportedly confronted his attacker over the beating of a friend, sparking a full scale fight between pupils from the two schools that ended in tragedy.
derick.khumalo