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Pamela Shumba, Senior Reporter
A Bulawayo man was allegedly stabbed to death by his ex-wife’s boyfriend on Saturday night following an altercation at the woman’s house in Mabutweni suburb.
Mr Collen Muleya, 52, died in the early hours of yesterday after bleeding from the right arm where he had been allegedly stabbed by his rival, only identified as Nomzy from Mpopoma.
Mr Muleya’s ex-wife Ms Margaret Komba reportedly brought Nomzy to her home around midnight and the two lovebirds found Muleya there, resulting in the fight.
The house reportedly belongs to Ms Komba’s late sister.
When The Chronicle arrived at the house yesterday morning, there were splashes of blood outside the house, on the walls and windows. The police had taken away Mr Muleya’s body.
Neighbours said Ms Komba and Nomzy had been arrested.
Mr Muleya and Ms Komba’s son, Shepherd Muleya, 24, who stays at another house in the suburb, told The Chronicle that he watched his father die as they were waiting for transport to take him to the hospital.
“I was at the Mabutweni shopping centre, where I work as a disc jockey when my younger brother, 17, who stays at home, came to me running. He was terrified and could not tell me what was going on. He pulled me by the hand and showed me our father lying on the ground.
“He had carried him from home to the market, near the shops, so that we could organise transport to take him to the hospital. All he could tell me was that he had a fight with our mother,” said Shepherd.
He said he questioned his younger brother because he thought it was impossible for his mother to attack their father in such a manner.
“Our mother is ill and she’s always in and out of hospital. They’ve always had misunderstandings but I thought it was impossible for her to attack him and leave him for dead.
“My brother then told me that our mother had brought a man home and a fight ensued after they found our father there,” said Shepherd, who was still wearing a blood stained T-shirt.
The two, he added, failed to get transport to take their father to the hospital and they watched him die.
“I called the ambulance and I was told it would come but a bit late because they were all out. My brother and I both tried calling our friends for help but we failed to get transport until he died.
“We carried his body back home with assistance from neighbours and covered it with a blanket before calling the police,” said Shepherd.
He said Nomzy, who he was seeing for the first time yesterday, told the police that he knew nothing about their father’s death.
“He told the police that my father broke windows during the fight and sustained injuries, which led to bleeding and his subsequent death,” he said.
Shepherd said his parents, who had seven children together, were no longer husband and wife although his father would visit occasionally to see his children.
“My father wanted things to work between them and visited frequently to see his children. He was always taking my mother to hospital when she wasn’t well but complained that my mother goes out drinking and brings other men home,” he said.
Ms Komba’s brother-in-law, Mr Twoboy Moyo, who also lives in Mabutweni, said she stopped staying with her ex-husband because he was always physically assaulting her.
“After separating from her husband, my sister-in-law married another man and they had two children together before he died. She got married to another man and they briefly stayed together before he also died.
“Since that time, she’s been staying with her children, trying to find a partner to share her life with. Her ex-husband never used to visit,” said Mr Moyo.
He said he started visiting when he lost his job where he was working in Killarney but would sleep in a separate room from his ex-wife.
“We thought all was well until one of their children knocked at my house at midnight telling me there was a fight at home. We rushed to the scene and found him dead. His children had called the police, who attended the scene,” said Mr Moyo.
Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson Inspector Precious Simango could not be reached for comment yesterday.
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