dyton mupawaenda
Peter Matika
Bulawayo Bureau
POLICE Commissioner-General Stephen Mutamba has ordered a comprehensive investigation into circumstances surrounding the death of detective Constable Cassandra Hove while assuring the family that no stone will be left unturned.
Comm-Gen Mutamba, through police national spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi, said all concerns raised by the late Hove’s family and the public had been noted.
“He has since ordered full-scale investigations into the case. The Zimbabwe Republic Police once again assures the public that no stone will be left unturned to establish what transpired on the day,” said Comm Nyathi.
He said police would release a statement once investigations are complete.
“The police will certainly update the family and public in due course once the current comprehensive investigations are complete. The investigations cover all the aspects raised by The Chronicle,” said Comm Nyathi.
Hove’s death has become a matter of public interest as it recently emerged that she was allegedly shot by a colleague in a shoot-out with robbers during a raid in Pumula South, Bulawayo, on Thursday last week.
Earlier on, it had been reported that she had been shot by robbers during a covert operation. It was only after Hove’s family raised concerns as to how she was killed that the matter raised eyebrows. She was 37.
During her funeral service at a funeral parlour in Bulawayo on Sunday, emotions ran high as family members confronted the police, accusing them of concealing the truth. They alleged that Hove was not killed by robbers, but by one of her colleagues and demanded clarification on whether this was an accident or intentional.
According to official police reports, Hove sustained gunshot wounds to her upper body during an exchange of fire with the suspects at around 8.40pm.
She was rushed to a nearby private clinic where she was pronounced dead on arrival.
The family is demanding to know the identities of the officers deployed in the Pumula South raid and the individual who authorised Hove’s post-mortem, arguing that they were not involved in the process and were shocked to learn that someone else had signed documents at the hospital as Hove’s next of kin.
Hove’s death came at a tragic time, as she had recently secured a scholarship to study forensic investigations in Russia. She is survived by four children and was buried at her rural home in Mberengwa on Monday.
Online Reporter