Online Reporter
Dalyn Chigwizura
THREE machete-wielding robbers who terrorised Bulawayo residents in a spate of violent attacks were on Thursday sentenced to a combined 72 years in prison.
Leeroy Sibanda (19) of Mzilikazi, Nkosilathi Dhlamini (25) of Nkulumane and Ntandoyenkosi Nyoni (35) of Cowdray Park, ambushed unsuspecting victims along bushy pathways and isolated areas, threatening them with machetes, axes and knives before robbing them of cash, clothes and other valuables.
They were convicted of two counts of armed robbery by Western Commonage regional magistrate, Mrs Sibongile Marondedze, who sentenced each of them to 24 years in prison. However, four years of each sentence were suspended for five years on condition of good behaviour, leaving each man to serve an effective 20 years.
In passing sentence, Mrs Marondedze said the trio posed a serious threat to the community and had to be removed from society.
“The accused persons terrorised Entumbane residents to the extent that they became known as the ‘machete gang.’ They deserve a lengthy custodial sentence, which should serve as a warning to other such gangs,” she said.
The prosecutor, Mr Milton Moyo told the court that on 24 April at around 5.30 PM, Kenneth Ncube and his friend Vusani Sibanda were collecting cow dung along the railway line near Entumbane suburb when the gang pounced.
Armed with a machete and a small axe, the robbers confronted Ncube, struck him on the right hand, and forced him to sit on the railway tracks. When Sibanda attempted to flee, he was intercepted by Nyoni and also ordered to sit on the tracks.
The robbers ordered Ncube to strip off his shoes, belt and jacket before taking them, along with his Itel cellphone. Nyoni attempted to strike Ncube again with a machete, but the victim blocked the blow with his hand, sustaining injuries to his palm before managing to escape.
“They then turned on Sibanda, beating him on the head, hand and hip with the axe handle, and robbed him of his clothes and cellphone. The stolen property was valued at US$125 and nothing was recovered,” said Mr Moyo.
About 30 minutes later, the trio attacked another victim, Simbarashe Ndlovu, who was walking along the same railway line. Pretending to ask for a cigarette, Sibanda suddenly struck Ndlovu on the head with a machete, followed by further blows from Dhlamini.
The robbers dragged Ndlovu off the path, forced him to undress and continued assaulting him until he lost consciousness. They stole his cellphone, a Samsung, US$40, R200, a pocket of potatoes and a loaf of bread before dumping him in a nearby sewer pond.
Ndlovu regained consciousness when a train horn blew nearby. He managed to find his way to Entumbane Police Station where he reported the matter to the police and was later taken to Mpilo Central Hospital for treatment.
Police investigations led to Nyoni’s arrest at his Cowdray Park home, where officers recovered the small axe used in the attacks, hidden under his pillow. He later implicated his accomplices, leading to their arrest.
