Two teenagers slapped with 5 years

Midlands Reporter
TWO teenage boys from Gweru have been slapped with effective three-year jail terms each for stabbing a 36-year-old man in a fight over a memory card they had bought from him.

Tafadzwa Gwezhara (17) and Tapiwanashe Sibanda (18) appeared before Gweru regional magistrate Mrs Phathekile Msipa yesterday facing one count of attempted murder each.

The pair pleaded not guilty to the charge, but was convicted after a full trial.

Mrs Msipa initially sentenced them each to five years in prison before suspended two years from each sentence on condition of good behaviour.

In passing sentence, Mrs Msipa said Gwezhara and Sibanda had committed a serious offence.

“I am sentencing you to five years each in prison of which two years each is suspended on condition of good behaviour,” she said. “Attempted murder is a serious offence and society should respect the sanctity of life. This sentence will send a strong a message to people in the society and help reduce murder cases.”

The complainant Besty Bhebhe told the court that he sold Gwezhara and Sibanda a memory card and later demanded it back because his wife wanted to copy some music that was on it.

He said Gwezhara and Sibanda refused to give it back resulting in a misunderstanding which led to them stabbing him.

“I sold them a memory card and when I got home, my wife said she wanted to copy her favourite music from the card,” said Mrs Msipa. “I went back to the boys intending to copy the music and they refused resulting in the misunderstanding.”

It was the State case that on October 17 last year at around 8pm the two convicts approached Besty Bhebhe at Pandas bar in Gweru.

While in the bar, the duo confronted Bhebhe and they had a misunderstanding over a memory stick they bought from him.

Gwezhara went on to stab Bhebhe on the stomach with a knife, the court heard.

You Might Also Like

Comments

Take our Survey

We value your opinion! Take a moment to complete our survey