Online Reporter
Zvikomborero Parafini
A MAN wanted in connection with a murder case linked to a US$2 500 maintenance arrears dispute has been arrested and appeared before the Harare Magistrates Court.
Jonah Nekati was brought before magistrate Ruth Moyo, facing allegations that he assisted his friend in the murder of the friend’s ex-wife.
Nekati was not asked to plead when he appeared before magistrate Moyo.
The court heard that Brian Chanachimwe (34) and his new wife, Olipa Chide, who committed suicide after the alleged murder, conspired to murder Chanachimwe’s ex-wife, Jennifer Kalembo.
The alleged motive was to escape the mounting child support obligation tied to the three children Chanachimwe sired with Kalembo.
On January 12, Chanachimwe reportedly lured Kalembo from her home in Mayambara to his residence in Pazza Crowhill, Borrowdale, under the pretext of providing US$150 for their children’s school fees.
Upon arrival, she was allegedly ambushed inside their house by the trio, who then fatally strangled her.
In an effort to conceal their crime, the couple allegedly disposed of evidence by taking Kalembo’s cellphone, removing the SIM card, and burying it near a rock behind their home.
They also burned her purse, which contained her national identity card, in an attempt to erase any trace of her identity before hiring a vehicle from a man named Solomon Gwanyanya, claiming they needed to transport a sick relative from the countryside.
Instead, they enlisted the help of their accomplice, Nekati, to load Kalembo’s lifeless body into the trunk of the hired Honda Fit around midnight.
The three drove to a remote dirt road near Eyecourt, opposite St Mary’s Waterworks, where they dumped Kalembo’s body.
On the following day, January 13, a passerby named Samson Bhobho discovered Kalembo’s body lying face-up on a dirt road and made a police report, prompting investigations that led to the arrest of Chanachimwe.
Upon hearing of her husband’s arrest, Chide committed suicide.
Recently, police received information that Nekati was hiding at a friend’s house in Mutare, where they arrested him.
After being interviewed, Nekati told the police that Chanachimwe and his wife murdered Kalembo and only engaged him to load the corpse into the car and that he had nothing to do with the murder.
