Siphakeme .Mnindwa
Mashudu Mambo
IN a bid to conceal a murder case, a 27-year-old man from Cowdray Park suburb in Bulawayo who murdered an imbiber at a night club in a dispute over a sex worker was nabbed at a shrine while performing cleansing rituals.
Alfred Ngwenya pleaded not guilty to murder but was convicted of culpable homicide by the Bulawayo High Court Judge,Justice Naison Chivayo.
He was sentenced to seven years in prison and three years of the sentence was suspended for five years on condition of good behaviour. Ngwenya will serve an effective four years in prison.
During the trial, a witness, Mqondisi Moyo, a friend of the deceased Azaria Dube, indicated that his friend wanted to hire a particular sex worker for the night. “On the day, in question, Dube approached a medium-built lady, who was light in complexion and they had a chat. After the conversation, he told me that he wanted to hire the lady for sex, and we continued drinking alcohol. At around 3 am, we met up with the sex worker who was standing with four men and Dube approached them. I left the scene and went home. After walking for a few metres, l heard some violent shouts emanating from where l left the victim and l went home. I tried calling the victim when l got home but his number was unreachable,” he said.
The court heard that on 14 November 2023, at around 3am, a misunderstanding arose and Ngwenya’s friend, a Mangena threw a bottle, which hit the victim, and he fell to the ground. While Dube was on the ground, Ngwenya produced a knife and stabbed him once on the left thigh and once on the back and then fled the scene.
At around 4am, Susuman Moyo discovered that the now deceased was lying in a pool of blood. She reported the matter to the police and investigations were carried out.
On 16 November 2023, the culprit was arrested in Silobela, Midlands’ province at the Johane Masowe Nyenyedzi Nomwe Shrine where he was being cleansed. This led to the recovery of the knife, which was used to commit the offence.
