Man killed over gossip

Gibson Mhaka

WE all know gossip to be a human universality but does it get an undeservedly bad rap?

This question was posed following the arrest of a 46-year-old man from Plumtree who allegedly killed his neighbour whom he accused of gossiping about him.

Themba Dongwani struck the now-deceased Vine Ndebele with a log several times all over his body, accusing him of spreading lies that he was a thief in Botswana. After the attack, Dongwani fled to Botswana, and Ndebele, who had sustained severe injuries, succumbed to them a few months later.

Proving the adage “justice always catches up” true, Dongwani, who fled to Botswana in 2017 after committing the heinous crime, was finally apprehended on 24 May this year. Six years later, he was caught trying to sneak back into Zimbabwe through an undesignated entry point.

For the offence, Dongwani had since appeared before Plumtree magistrate Joshua Nembaware charged with murder. He was not asked to plead and was remanded in custody to 17 July.

The State’s case, as presented by prosecutor Selestine Madziwa is that on 1 July 2017, at around 10am the accused struck the now-deceased several times with a log all over his body.

The motive is alleged to be the accused’s suspicions that Ndebele was spreading rumours about him that he was stealing computers in Botswana. Following the attack, Ndebele fell to the ground and was ferried to the hospital.

There, he received treatment for a fractured left arm and scalp injuries. He was subsequently discharged, but his condition deteriorated while at home. He succumbed to his injuries on 8 September 2017.

Following the offense, the accused fled the scene and remained at large ever since. He was arrested by the police on 24 May while trying to sneak back from Botswana through an undesignated point of entry.