Online Reporter
Patrick Chitumba, [email protected]
A man from Lower Gweru has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for fatally stabbing a fellow villager. Talent Muhlolo (26), of Nsukunengi Village under Chief Bunina, Lower Gweru, pleaded guilty to culpable homicide but was convicted of murder by Bulawayo High Court judge, Justice Munamato Mutevedzi, sitting on circuit in Gweru.
Muhlolo received a 30-year prison sentence for the fatal stabbing of Mr Stanley Mdlongwa (40), of Ndlala Village, also under Chief Bunina. Prosecutor Mr Talent Tadenyika told the court that on August 13 last year, at St Faith Business Centre in Lower Gweru, Mr Mdlongwa had a dispute with Muhlolo and his brother Tatenda, who remains at large.
At around 9PM, Tatenda and Muhlolo pursued Mr Mdlongwa, who fled into a bottle store at the business centre seeking refuge. Muhlolo entered the bottle store wielding an axe, followed by Tatenda who was armed with a knife.
The brothers raised their weapons intending to strike Mr Mdlongwa but refrained due to the presence of patrons inside. They then dragged Mr Mdlongwa outside, where Tatenda stabbed him once in the left side of the chest, causing him to collapse. The pair fled the scene immediately after the attack.
The incident was reported to the police, and Mr Mdlongwa’s body was transported to United Bulawayo Hospitals for a post-mortem examination. The report concluded that the cause of death was acute cardiac failure, haemorrhagic shock, and a perforated heart.
One of the witnesses, Ms Rejoice Sitambi, told the court that the altercation occurred around 11.40PM as she was preparing to close the bottle store.
She said she saw Mr Mdlongwa enter the bar with Muhlolo and Tatenda in pursuit, armed with an axe and a knife.
“I saw Talent and Tatenda Muhlolo grab the deceased — one pulling and the other pushing him outside. Tatenda then stabbed him in the chest and he screamed,” she said.
Ms Sitambi said she hid behind the fridge inside the bottle store and remained there until the manager arrived.
A police report was filed, leading to Muhlolo’s arrest. Tatenda is still at large.
