Online Reporter
B-Metro Reporter
A RECKLESS truck driver whose speeding rig crushed a small car and killed two people on the Masvingo-Mbalabala Road has been jailed for 18 months, banned from the road and stripped of his driver’s licence.
Piniel Ngwarai (34) was convicted of culpable homicide by the Zvishavane Magistrates’ Court following a road traffic accident that left two people dead on the spot.
The horror crash happened on 3 August 2025 at around 4.30pm near the 124 kilometre peg along the busy highway.
In a statement, the National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe (NPAZ) said Ngwarai was driving a Volvo 15 tonne truck when a commuter omnibus ahead of him stopped to make a right hand turn.
“The offender who was travelling at an excessive speed and following too closely applied emergency brakes, lost control of the truck and swerved into the oncoming lane,” read the statement.
In the oncoming lane, disaster struck.
“The truck collided with a Toyota Town Ace before landing on top of the smaller vehicle,” the NPAZ said.
“Two people were trapped in the wreckage and died instantly.”
The court heard that the crash was entirely avoidable and caused by Ngwarai’s negligence behind the wheel.
The NPAZ outlined the driver’s failures as “speeding under the circumstances, failure to keep a proper lookout and following the vehicle in front too closely”.
After weighing the evidence, the court came down hard on the truck driver.
“He was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, of which four months were suspended. He will serve an effective custodial term of 14 months,” the NPAZ said.
“In addition, the court prohibited him from driving for 12 months and ordered the cancellation of his driver’s licence,” read the statement.
