Moffat Mungazi
Lovemore Kadzura
Weekender Reporter
A 26-YEAR-OLD Makoni woman was sentenced to six months in jail for bashing her husband after he had intercepted a love message from her alleged boyfriend.
The convict — Nyarai Annah Madondo, of Madondo Village under Chief Makoni, appeared before Rusape provincial magistrate, Mr Tendai Mahwe, facing two charges under the Domestic Violence Act (Chapter 5.16), which criminalises physical abuse against an intimate partner.
Madondo admitted assaulting her husband, Washington Madondo (32), the father of her four children, after he picked up her phone, read the message, and then refused to return it.
Mr Mahwe suspended five months of the sentence for five years on condition of good behaviour, and set aside a further one month provided Madondo completes 140 hours of community service at St Killian’s High School.
She was unrepresented during the hearing.
Prosecutor, Mrs Faith Mutukwa, said Nyarai assaulted her husband with a metal hoe handle and with her fists on several occasions, forcing him to flee their homestead.
When he returned, she struck him with a cooking stick repeatedly on the head, prompting him to report the matter to the police.
“The accused is the complainant’s wife. On March 10, 2026 at about 4pm, the couple were at their matrimonial home watching television when a misunderstanding arose after a WhatsApp love message appeared on the accused’s phone while the complainant was using it. The accused demanded her phone back. The husband refused and went outside. The accused followed him outside and struck him once on the right shoulder with a hoe handle and several times on the face with fists,” said Mutukwa.
The complainant sustained a swollen forehead and right shoulder.
“On March 11 at about 12am, the complainant returned home, knocked, opened the door and entered their room. She again demanded her phone, and when the complainant refused, she took a cooking stick, and hit him several times on the head. The complainant sustained a swollen forehead and was not medically examined,” said Mrs Mutukwa.
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