Peter Matika [email protected]
A BULAWAYO nightclub bouncer who brutally assaulted a fellow bodybuilder and Taekwondo expert, repeatedly striking him with stones and leaving him with serious head injuries, has been sentenced to five years in prison, but will effectively serve four years after the court suspended part of the sentence.
Jackson Mwanza appeared before Bulawayo regional magistrate, Ms Sibonginkosi Mkandla, where he pleaded guilty to the assault charge and appealed for leniency.
The magistrate considered his guilty plea and personal circumstances, including that he was a first-time offender, before reducing the effective sentence to four years.
Mwanza was convicted following an attack on Ricky Chimwemwe Tembo along Station Road in Thorngrove on September 27.
The court heard that Mwanza struck Tembo once on the forehead with a stone, causing him to fall to the ground.
However, instead of stopping, Mwanza allegedly continued assaulting him, picking up more stones before sitting on him and repeatedly striking him on the head and face.
Tembo sustained serious injuries and bled profusely before losing consciousness.
He was subsequently rushed to Mpilo Central Hospital for treatment, while a police report was later made, leading to Mwanza’s arrest.
During the initial court proceedings, prosecutor Ms Nkanyezi Xaba told the court that Mwanza had continued attacking Tembo even after knocking him to the ground.
The attack left Tembo requiring medical attention and raised concerns over the use of violence in settling disputes. However, Mwanza’s conviction brings to the fore his previous brushes with the law involving allegations of assault.
In 2016, while working as a bouncer at a local nightclub, he faced two assault charges arising from separate alleged incidents involving a doctor and a police officer on the same night.
The doctor reportedly sustained injuries after Mwanza allegedly slapped him several times and pushed him to the ground.
A police officer stationed at Mpilo Central Hospital’s police post also accused the bouncer of assaulting him after Mwanza allegedly confronted him over claims that he had been dozing off while on duty at the nightclub.
Mwanza denied the allegations at the time, arguing that the doctor had behaved inappropriately towards a stripper and that he had merely been carrying out his responsibilities as a bouncer.
He also accused the complainants of fabricating medical reports.
