Langa Mabena
Mashudu Mambo
A love triangle turned horribly wrong when a man from Bulawayo was killed after he was allegedly stabbed in a fight over a woman.
Innocent Mugari appeared before Bulawayo High Court Judge Justice Evangelista Kabasa facing a charge of murder.
He was convicted after a full trial and sentenced to 16 years in prison.
In his defence, Mugari told the court that he was acting in self-defence as the deceased was attacking him.
“I tried to reason with the deceased and asked him not to assault my lover in my presence and he became violent and attacked me with fists, I fought back to defend myself and Precious Mwatsayi.
“The deceased produced an okapi knife and seeing that he was armed, we wrestled and l managed to secure the knife and free myself from the deceased. He tried to hit me with a stone and I tried to block him and in the process, he was stabbed,” he said.
The court heard that on 14 August 2021, Precious Mwatsiya had an appointment to meet the now deceased at 5pm as she wanted him to lend her US$10. Mwatsiya also had an appointment with Mugari who was also her lover.
At around 6pm, she met the now deceased at corner Herbert Chitepo Street and Masotsha Ndlovu Avenue in Bulawayo city centre.
The victim was escorting Mwatsiya to her place of residence when the two were intercepted by Mugari who demanded to know the nature of their relationship.
Mwatsiya quickly denied the existence of any love relationship between her and the now-deceased. This angered the now deceased who assaulted Mwatsiya with a slap on her left cheek and when he tried to further assault her, he was stopped by Mugari. The two men began to fight and during the fight, Mugari produced a knife which he used to stab the now deceased in his left ear and under his left armpit. He began to cry and lifted both his hands to surrender and walked towards nearby Malvin Court. Mugari followed him and tripped him and he fell to the ground. Mugari left the scene together with Mwatsiya leaving behind the now deceased bleeding profusely. A passerby, Cosmas Zulu followed after the now-deceased and enquired on what had happened.
However, he slumped and collapsed in front of Zulu outside Malvin Court. Zulu made some attempts to secure transport and was helped by Nqobile Zvimba who called an ambulance.
Mugari returned to the crime scene together with Mwatsiya, Zulu made some attempts to effect citizen arrest on him but he ran away.
Mwatsiya remained with Zulu until the ambulance ferried the now-deceased to Mpilo Hospital, he later died at the hospital. Zulu reported the matter to the police and a manhunt for Mugari was launched.
Mugari could not be located at his workplace and Mwatsiya directed the police to Takunda Chiwera who was suspected to have been with Mugari.
Chiwera was found at a car sale and the police arrested Mugari. In Chiwera’s house the police recovered the culprit’s blood-stained clothes including a black leather jacket, grey jean trousers, a black belt, white tennis shoes and a wristwatch.
On 15 August 2024, while on their way from the police station Mwatsiya and Tawanda Mapiye passed through the scene of crime and he noticed an okapi knife on the ground with blood stains. Mwatsiya positively identified it as the weapon used by the criminal and Mapiye immediately called the police who recovered the okapi knife.
Online Reporter