BY JAIROS SAUNYAMA DETAILS have emerged of how a Marondera millionaire farmer, Stanley Masaiti (65) committed suicide on August 20 at his brother’s gate.
The new details are contrary to social media reports that Masaiti first gunned down his younger brother, Daniel, before shooting himself.
Stanley and Daniel are siblings, with the former having been a famous tobacco farmer at Mhembwe Farm, outside Marondera.
Daniel owns some shops in Marondera and Macheke, among them the popular entertainment spot Chipiwa Gardens.
Daniel (56) operates his bussinesses under Danchip Enterprises.
NewsDay has it on good authority that there had been a long-running wrangle between the two brothers since 2017. The now deceased Stanley reportedly accused Daniel of stealing US$3 million from him.
Daniel once worked as the farm administrator before he left the business.
The deceased then approached the High Court to settle the matter under HC2640/17.
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It is reported that on August 20, at around 5am, Stanley asked his brother Mutsa Masaiti (59) to accompany him to Chipiwa Gardens and he accepted.
Upon arrival, Stanley then ordered his brother to drive back while he remained by the gate.
Mutsa drove off.
At 6:25am, Stanley posted a notice that he had written in a Marondera WhatsApp crime group asking Daniel and his wife to return his money.
The WhatsApp group comprises police officers, businesspeople and journalists in Marondera.
It is reported that five minutes later, a security guard at Chipiwa Gardens, who was carrying out routine checks around the premises, noticed that Stanley was standing at the gate.
The security guard then heard a gunshot from where Stanley was standing and saw him falling down.
The security guard informed Daniel of the incident, who then alerted the police who arrived at the scene and observed that Stanley’s body had a gunshot wound on the forehead.
He was lying in a pool of blood. A pistol with 15 rounds of ammunition was found between the deceased’s legs.
In a statement, Danchip Enterprises said Daniel was not at the premises during the suicide incident.
“On Saturday, August 20, 2022, we woke up to the heart-breaking news of a fatal shooting at Chipiwa Gardens. The deceased, Mr Stanley Masaiti, shot himself, and the circumstances of the incident are being investigated by the respective authorities.
“The owners of the Chipiwa Gardens, Mr Daniel Masaiti and his wife Chipiwa Masaiti, were not present at the time of the incident, and reports that Mr Daniel Masaiti was shot by his brother, Mr Stanley Masaiti before turning the gun on himself are not true,” the statement read.
Chipiwa Gardens has been closed until further notice.
- Follow Jairos on Twitter@jairossaunyama
