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This picture collage shows Kumbirai Musariri, an alleged mbanje peddler and known shebeen owner, kicking a hapless Robina Makumbe over a $6 debt. The attack has triggered demonstrations by groups that feel the $50 fine he was slapped with was not enough to serve the interests of justice in the matter. — (Pictures courtesy of H-Metro)

• Women front drive to bell the cat • Neighbours tell of endless violence • $50 fine slammed, retrial demanded

The Mafia, whose origins are traced to the Italian island of Sicily, is a gangland many would not dare talk about And communities naturally worry when they witness the reincarnation of spirits of Toto Riina or Don Viccio, notorious Godfathers of Sicily, within their neighbourhoods.Residents of Budiriro, Harare, could have felt their community and its stability were under siege recently when one of their own, Kumbirai Musariri, went berserk and pummelled a Glen View woman over a $6 debt.

The incident, which was recorded on video, went viral, resulting in the arrest and subsequent sentencing of Musariri.

It sent shockwaves in Budiriro and its environs.

Musariri brutally assaulted Glen View vendor Robina Mukumbe (47) and was fined a mere $50 or 10 days in jail if he fails to pay the fine on or before October 28.

Mbare magistrate Gladys Moyo also slapped Musariri with a wholly suspended two-month jail term for five years on condition that he does not commit a similar offence.

In passing sentence, Moyo said she took into account that Musariri was a first offender who did not waste the court’s time by pleading guilty to the offence before being fined $50.

However, many saw this as a travesty of justice, sparking demonstrations in Budiriro.

Following the incident, The Herald dispatched a crew late Thursday and Friday morning to establish Musariri’s persona and his relationship with his neighbours, considering the violent manner in which he assaulted the hapless Robina.

And it turned out that Musariri is far from a first offender, according to his terrified neighbours.

The visit revealed that shebeen owner Musariri is a neighbourhood bully who has been terrorising his neighbours and the community of Budiriro 3.

According to residents interviewed by The Herald, the latest attack on Robina was one of the many his neighbours have grown accustomed to.

“Ndozvaari (That’s his character). He beats up people at the slightest provocation and everyone is afraid of him,” said a neighbour who preferred anonymity for fear of reprisals.

Early this year, the neighbour said, Musariri brutally assaulted a girl in the neighbourhood in the same manner he assaulted Robina.

“What is strange is that police know about it but they have not done anything. He runs a shebeen well into the night, he is a well-known distributor of mbanje, fights break out regularly at his house and he beats up people but nothing is done about it.”

Harare Provincial police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Tarirai Dube professed ignorance of the allegations, saying there were no other cases that were reported against Musariri, except the recent one in which he was fined $50 by the police.

“We want to urge members of the public who were assaulted by Musariri to report to the police so that investigations can be carried out,” she said.

Residents however, insisted that Musariri’s history of violence was well documented.

Musariri has not only unleashed violence on his neighbours, his family, particularly his wife has been on the receiving end of his bellicosity.

“You do not need to go very far. If you ask people around this area, they will tell you that Musariri beats up his wife in the presence of his first born child who is now in Form One,” said an airtime vendor who calls himself Pets.

“He did not start abusing Robina recently, but he had harassing her for some time. He once went to her vending place and poured sand on all the food she had cooked and no one dared stand up to him. You can understand why even Robina’s husband could not go after Musariri following the assault. Haiite muface iyeye,” Pets said.

Giving an insight into Musariri’s life, one of the neighbours revealed that in a “typical good guy gone bad fashion”, his violent tendencies could be a result of his illicit dealings as a marijuana peddler, because he had a stable background.

“Living with his parents, who are now late, he was a jolly good fellow who socialised with everyone. Things took a wrong turn when Musariri started running the shebeen following his parents’ demise,” a neighbour told this paper.

Musariri was not available for comment.

He is believed to have gone into hiding after scores of women demonstrated at his residence demanding his rearrest.

Persistent knocks on Musariri’s residence yielded no response, although voices could be heard in the house.

Residents of Budiriro are silently praying that police will arrest him over several cases that have been reported against him, putting an end to this menace.

And the feeling is mutual, with women’s organisations and other pressure groups calling for a retrial, saying the $50 fine Musariri paid for brutally assaulting Robina was a “mockery”.

Gender activist Tendai Wenyika, who was part of a group of women who demonstrated against Musariri said the fine was too little considering the brutal manner in which he assaulted Robina.

“We are actually calling on the judiciary to call for a retrial. Such a fine does not correspond with the brutality that Musariri subjected Robina to.

“If anything, such judgments put women at the mercy of men, when the law should be safeguarding their welfare and safety.