Tendai Gukutikwa
Lovemore Kadzura
Weekender Reporter
A 43-YEAR-OLD man from Seke, Mashonaland East, allegedly doused his mother-in-law with petrol, and set her alight with a cigarette lighter, leaving her severely burnt and fighting for her life at Victoria Chitepo Provincial Hospital.
The suspect, Loverage Abraham Muchapondwa is accused of committing the heinous crime in Chiduku Village, Chief Chiduku, in Makoni, after confronting his mother-in-law, Fungai Sanderson (48), who was accompanying her grandchild to school.
Muchapondwa allegedly travelled to Chiduku Village to follow up on his wife and children who had ran away from their Seke homestead following an undisclosed misunderstanding.
When Muchapondwa met Sanderson (48), he demanded that his family must return home. He allegedly took things too far and committed the horrific act of dousing her with petrol, and setting her alight with a cigarette lighter.
Muchapondwa, who was not represented, appeared before Rusape regional magistrate, Mr Francis Mapfumo on Monday, facing attempted murder charges.
He was not asked plead, and was remanded in custody to May 18. The accused was advised to apply for bail at the High Court.
Prosecutor, Mr Marlon Makamba said Sanderson screamed for help as the fire engulfed her, prompting her husband to rush to the scene, and remove her burning clothes.
“The accused is the complainant’s son-in-law. On April 30, around 7am, the accused visited the complainant’s homestead, where he encountered her accompanying her granddaughter to school.
“The accused grabbed the complainant’s jacket by the collar and demanded that she returns his family, as his wife and children had left him following a misunderstanding. Muchapondwa asked her why she had taken his children.
He produced a plastic bottle containing petrol and poured it over the complainant’s head and all over the body. He subsequently set her alight with a cigarette lighter, and she screamed for help.
“Her husband intervened, removing her burning clothes. She was initially taken to a local clinic, then referred to Rusape General Hospital, where she was admitted. On May 1, she was transferred to Victoria Chitepo Provincial Hospital, where she remains hospitalised. She sustained severe burns and the medical affidavit is not yet available,” said Mr Makamba.
Online Reporter