adminPolice confirmed the incident that happened on Wednesday at about 4am at the railway station on the periphery of the Gweru central business district.
Midlands police spokesperson Inspector Patrick Chademana identified the injured man as Timothy Nyati and the suspect as Michael Nyati.
The two are not related and neither do they know each other.
Witnesses said the critically injured Timothy Nyati was in the company of two of his friends when the incident happened.
“They were coming from a local nightclub where they were drinking beer. When they got to the railway station they headed for the canteen, which had closed. The staff was busy cleaning the shop.
“The three men demanded that the canteen staff open the door for them as they wanted to buy,” said a witness.
The witness said the NRZ canteen staff explained to the trio that they had already closed and were busy cleaning.
“The three men were adamant and insisted that the door be opened to allow them to buy. They started arguing with and hurling insults at the canteen staff making it clear that they were prepared to even force their way in. It was at this stage that the canteen staff felt threatened and summoned the security guard. When the security guard, Michael Nyati, arrived, he also tried to explain to the three that the canteen was closed for business but they immediately pounced on him and started assaulting him. Before the security guard could retaliate, one of the three men broke a beer bottle which he then used to attack the security guard on the face resulting in the guard sustaining deep wounds on the face,” said the witness.
The witness said when the security guard noticed that he was being overpowered, he rushed to a cloak room where he came back armed with a rifle.
The witness said Michael shot Timothy first on the head but the man who was still under the influence of alcohol kept on advancing and was shot two more times.
Insp Chademana said the police were still investigating the matter in a bid to establish the true facts behind the shooting incident.
He said Timothy was shot three times and was still admitted to Gweru Provincial Hospital.
“We need to establish the nature of the argument Timothy had with Michael and the exact facts behind the incident. Michael shot Timothy first on the head, then on the left cheek and left thigh as he tried to stop him from advancing. It was the third shot that finally stopped him. Both Timothy and his aggressor, Michael, were rushed to Gweru Provincial
Hospital for treatment. Michael was treated and discharged but Timothy is still admitted to the hospital. His condition is said to be serious.
The matter was reported to the police who attended to the scene.
“Investigations are still in progress,” said Insp Chademana.
Online Reporter