A husband who found his friend in bed with his wife burned him with a red hot iron several times on the thighs and buttocks. He later died from his wounds.
The woman’s husband, Thompson Chuma, from Mangwi, appeared before Bulawayo High Court judge Ngoni Nduna to face murder charges. However, he was found guilty of murder after trial and was sentenced to three years in prison, fully suspended for five years on condition of good behaviour.
B Metro reported that Choma indicated that he did not intend to kill the victim, who was his girlfriend.
“I regret my actions which were a result of the moment. I was angry when I found my friend sleeping with my wife and what made it worse was that my friend was well aware of his HIV status.
During the trial, the man’s wife admitted to having an affair with the deceased.
“On the said day, at about six in the morning, my husband left home saying that he was going to Matobo and would not return on the same day. At about 12 noon, I received a call from the deceased. We had a conversation and he asked to come over for the night as my husband was away. I agreed.
“The deceased arrived at my house at about nine o’clock in the evening and we went to bed. At around 10pm, my husband came home and knocked on the door. He entered the house and found his friend standing behind the door wearing underwear. She added: “The deceased was holding a handle, and my husband closed the door and put the keys in his pocket.”
The woman’s husband asked the deceased to explain why he was in his bedroom with his wife, but he failed to justify his presence and the confrontation turned physical. Ncube noted that this led to a fight and Chuma overpowered the deceased.
“The deceased raised his neck to attack Chuma but he managed to catch her and they wrestled,” she said.
After overpowering his opponent, Choma retrieved a dehorned iron that was in the corner of their bedroom, went out and closed the door, with the couple inside. Chuma went to the fireplace, put the dehorning iron on the fire to heat it up and returned to the bedroom.
Then his wife’s lover was burned with a dehorned iron once on his right leg, once on his right thigh, once on the humerus, once on the upper sternum, once on his left arm, and once on his back.
After inflicting pain on the victim, he opened the door and the deceased went to his home in Plumtree. When he arrived home, his condition worsened and he was transferred to Mpilo Hospital in Bulawayo. He was admitted to hospital on July 11, 2017 and was discharged on September 13, but remained bedridden at home. On October 12, 2017, his condition deteriorated overnight and he was taken to Plumtree District Hospital where he died before a doctor could attend him.
