Two men from Nketa suburb in Bulawayo have been arrested after they allegedly fatally assaulted a suspected burglar they caught stealing goods from one of the suspects’ house.
The duo, who are neighbours, are now facing a murder charge.
Bulawayo Police spokesperson Inspector Abednico Ncube said the accused, who have been identified as Marvelous Mpofu (21) who resides at house number 1383 Nketa 8, and Marvelous Sibanda (30) who resides at house number 1384 Nketa 8, fatally assaulted Bekithemba Ndlovu of 2372 Nketa 8 in the early hours of March 8.
“On 08 March 2021 at about 0300hours, Marvellous Mpofu arrived home from a funeral wake in the neighbourhood. He heard some footsteps outside his house, he then proceeded to his bedroom and saw a hand fishing out an SMC laptop, iPhone 5s, and a wallet which were on the bed. He then alerted his neighbour, Marvellous Sibanda and they chased after the intruder who is the now-deceased Bekithemba Ndlovu,” said Inspector Ncube.
“They managed to apprehend Ndlovu who was in possession of Mpofu’s stolen property. A mob then gathered and assaulted Bekithemba Ndlovu using unknown objects all over the body.”
Mpofu later maded a report at the ZRP Tshabalala police station and the police attended the scene and found Ndlovu lying unconscious on the ground with some injuries on the thighs, buttocks, head, and back.
He was ferried to Mpilo Hospital for treatment.
“On the same day at around 1200 hours, Bekithemba Ndlovu passed on whilst being attended by the doctor. The body was taken to Mpilo mortuary awaiting post-mortem,” said Inspector Ncube.
Inspector Ncube warned the public against taking the law into their own hands.
“While it is commended for the community to come together and fight crime, assaulting suspects is unlawful and want to discourage such conduct which is becoming a trend among citizens. Let us value and respect life regardless of circumstances, mob justice will never replace legal justice and should stop forthwith,” he said.
