Arron Nyamayaro
A WOMAN, who stabbed her mother-in-law to death in a dispute over a cellphone SIM card, has relived the moment she plunged a knife into her abdomen.
Chipo Madzvimbo, who is serving 20 years for killing her 42-year-old mother-in-law, is now regretting her decision.
She told her story during an Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA) Harare Chapter visit at Chikurubi Female Prison on Saturday. Madzvimbo said their misunderstanding began when she accused her husband’s younger brother of removing the SIM card from her phone.
“I got angry. I picked up a wooden plank and hit him on the head. Blood started oozing,” she said.
She added that when her mother-in-law saw the blood, she intervened aggressively.
“When my mother-in-law saw the blood, she took an axe and charged at me. I then picked up a kitchen knife and stabbed her in her abdomen.
“She died,” Madzvimbo said.
After the killing, she said her husband advised her to run from the police. “I felt guilty but my husband advised me to run away from the police,” she said.
“I realised Zimbabwe was too small for me to hide from the police but he kept on warning me over the seriousness of the offence and we escaped.”
According to Madzvimbo, her husband took her to a relative in Mutoko, where she said she was physically and emotionally abused.
“Out of emotions, I decided to leave him and returned to Hwedza, where I surrendered myself to the police. That is how I was arrested, convicted and sentenced,” she said.
She surrendered herself to the police two years after committing the offence in 2023.
She was convicted of murder and sentenced to 20 years in June last year.
She regrets how her actions were now affecting her children. “My mother, born in 1942, is the one struggling to look after my children while I am in prison. “I regret my actions totally,” she said.
Speaking at the event, ISACA official, Loise Ngulube, said the visit was meant to promote cybersecurity awareness among inmates to help them avoid repeating similar mistakes after their release.
“ISACA is a global professional association that advances digital trust, cybersecurity, information systems audit, governance, risk management and emerging technology,” Ngulube said.
She added that the chapter marked ISACA Community Day with a cyber-awareness session targeted at female inmates, where crimes of passion are common.
“Let it be known to everyone out there that every voice note, message and photograph you post on social media can leave footprints that will haunt you if you engage in criminal activities,” Ngulube said.
“Learn to respect other people’s rights and privacy. Do not tamper with their mobile phones or try to unlock them.”
Ngulube said the initiative also offered ISACA members a chance to contribute through donations, voluntary service, knowledge sharing and community engagement. ISACA donated groceries, including mealie-meal and beans, as well as sanitary wear.
Principal Correctional Officer, Joyce Chisora, received the donation on behalf of the prison services.
