Online Reporter
Arron Nyamayaro
A TRUCK driver drove from his base in South Africa to Chitungwiza to kill himself, and his four-month-old son, at his brother-in-law’s home.
Tonderai Spacious Mukaro, 31, buried the toddler in the backyard of his brother-in-law’s home in St Mary’s, Chitungwiza.
Mukaro left South Africa on Tuesday last week and took the toddler on the trip to Zimbabwe.
He said he wanted to deliver a message to his brother-in-law, Robert Kanyangarara, at his home in St Mary’s.
Mukaro said the message was intended for all his in-laws. It was about his wife, Christine Mashavire, 31, whom he accused of having an extra-marital affair in Pretoria.
On Friday night, Kanyangarara left Mukaro and the baby sleeping in the dining room, and went into his bedroom to sleep.
The following morning, Kanyangarara woke up and found Mukaro and the child missing from the dining room.
He checked outside and saw Mukaro lying unconscious, with white froth around his mouth.
in the backyard.
His lifeless body was lying on top of a shallow grave, which he had dug in the backyard, where he had buried his son.
Kanyangarara told H-Metro that he tried in vain to resolve Mukaro’s problems with his wife after he caught her pants down with their landlord.
“We lost lives in a very sad manner,” said Kanyangarara.
“Mukaro came from South Africa saying he had caught his wife pants down with their landlord.
“What disturbed him a lot was that after he returned home from work, his landlord ordered him to leave the house and his wife supported the landlord’s decision.
“He took the baby and headed to Zimbabwe.
“He told me that he wanted to end his life because of that and I tried to resolve the matter saying the incident was not worth his life and he appeared to have accepted it.”
Kanyangarara added:
“Background to this is that Christine had been a lady of the night, hooking up with several truck drivers, and Mukaro became one of her clients.
“They stayed together until he caught her with their landlord.”
Kanyangara believes the breaking point came at around midnight, just before Mukaro killed himself and his kid.
“My last conversation with Mukaro was at around midnight when he told me that he had received some nude photographs sent by his wife when she was with the landlord.
“She also told him that the baby was not his.
“I want to believe that could have led him to commit suicide as his wife had indicated that she wanted to send her younger sister to collect the baby the following day.
“It is so sad and disturbing that two lives have gone because of mujolo.”
A local resident told H-Metro that the community was in shock.
“As residents, we were shocked. The house is inside a pre-cast wall, otherwise passers-by could have seen the two (bodies).”
“There were no visible injuries and no signs of struggle or blood stains at the scene.”
The resident added that an empty 100 ml bottle of suspected poison, was found nearby.
A cloth was also stuffed in the baby’s mouth.
It is suspected that Mukaro killed his son by suffocating him before committing suicide by poisoning.
The bodies of the two were taken to Chitungwiza Central Hospital Mortuary for post-mortem examinations, the neighbour said.
National police spokesperson, Commissioner Paul Nyathi, could not be reached for comment. The case was reported at St Mary’s Police Station.
Bongani Ndlovu