Online Reporter
B-Metro Reporter
A GOKWE man will spend the rest of his life behind bars after brutally stabbing his girlfriend to death.
Edviva Muchena (46) was sentenced to life imprisonment by the High Court sitting in Gokwe after being found guilty of murdering 29-year-old Sambulelo Letha in a vicious knife attack.
The gruesome incident occurred on 1 August 2025 at Gokwe Old GMB Forest in Gokwe South. Muchena, the court heard, confronted his girlfriend while she was on her way home and demanded to speak to her “in private.” Moments later, Letha let out a piercing scream as Muchena became violent. The motive for the attack was not revealed.
“The offender stabbed her multiple times in the neck with an Okapi knife, causing her to bleed to death at the scene,” the National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe (NPAZ) said in a statement.
When Letha failed to return home, worried villagers launched a search and later discovered her lifeless body lying in a pool of blood. Police in Gokwe attended the scene and recovered both the body and the murder weapon.
A post-mortem carried out at United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) confirmed that she died from acute cardiorespiratory failure, haemorrhagic shock, and lacerated neck vessels.
In passing sentence, the court described the attack as “brutal, premeditated, and senseless,” noting that Muchena had deliberately taken advantage of the victim’s vulnerability. The judge said the life sentence reflected society’s deep condemnation of gender-based violence.
“The courts will continue to protect women and vulnerable persons through decisive justice,” the NPAZ said. “Violence, especially gender-based violence, has no place in our communities.”
