adminAdelaide Moyo Chronicle Reporter
A MAN has been sentenced to three years in prison after he axed a fellow villager, leaving him with a fractured skull following a misunderstanding over drinking water for livestock.
Vusisiwe Moyo, 35, of Dollar Block Village in Inyathi, struck Ishmael Ncube, 27, with an axe on the head after he alleged his cattle had finished water meant for villagers.
Moyo pleaded guilty to assault charges when he appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Sheunesu Matova on circuit at Inyathi court.
He was sentenced to three years imprisonment, but six months were suspended for five years on condition of good behaviour.
The magistrate said the ongoing water shortages in resettlement areas should not be used as an excuse for violent behaviour.
“There’s an ongoing struggle for water but that doesn’t mean people have to be assaulted. Considering that the complainant sustained serious injuries and had not provoked you, your sentence will be a harsh one,” said Matova.
Prosecuting, Lungisani Dube told the court that on October 7, Moyo was fetching water at a local borehole at Dollar block Village when Ncube approached him.
“He told him that he had many cattle and that was a strain on villagers as his cattle needed a lot of water,” Dube said.
The court heard that in a fit of rage, Moyo took his axe and struck Ncube on the head.
“He collapsed and other villagers who had gone to fetch water ran away fearing that the short-tempered Moyo would axe them too,” said the prosecutor.
After committing the crime, Moyo went into hiding and was arrested days later in a nearby village.
A medical report revealed that Ncube’s skull was fractured.
Online Reporter