Online Reporter
B-Metro
A HURUNGWE villager has been dragged before the courts after allegedly butchering three people, including a four-year-old child.
Patrick Gono Makufa (38) of Makone Village, Chief Mujinga, appeared at Karoi Magistrates Court facing three counts of murder after the grisly attack on 24 August.
The victims were named as Costain Mabheka (55), a partially blind man; his four-year-old child, Kunashe; and 19-year-old Atildah Mharadze.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPAZ), Makufa, who reportedly has mental health challenges, armed himself with a wooden axe handle before striking terror in the quiet Tengwe community.
“He struck the adult male at his homestead, attacked the child while he was playing in the yard, and later assaulted the young woman as she carried a bucket from the river,” the NPAZ said.
The carnage was discovered by a 13-year-old relative who returned from herding cattle to find the victims lying in pools of blood. Detectives later recovered the bloodstained axe handle after the accused led them to it. Witness testimonies also pinned him to the killings.
Makufa was remanded in custody to 9 September and told to apply for bail at the High Court.
“Murder is a heinous crime that threatens entire communities. Perpetrators will face the full force of the law,” prosecutors said in a statement.
