BY DESMOND CHINGARANDE HIGH Court Judge Justice Tawanda Chitapi has sentenced a Murehwa man to 30 years in jail after he axed his father to death accusing him of witchcraft.
Elliot Rewu was convicted on February 6, 2020, but had requested reasons for the judgment.
In his ruling, Justice Chitapi said Rewu was found guilty of murder with actual intent.
“The accused has been found guilty of murder with actual intent. The sentence provisions where the accused is found guilty of murder with actual intent provide that the accused should be or shall be sentenced to death, imprisonment for life or a definite period of imprisonment where the murder determined that the murder was committed in aggravating circumstances,” Justice Chitapi ruled.
“In this case, the conduct of the accused caused the death of an 80-year male being. In terms of the provisions of section 47(3), the fact that the victim is over 80 years old is to be considered as a circumstance of aggravation. The court made a finding that the murder appeared to have been premeditated.
“The accused used a dangerous weapon in the form of an axe. The accused aimed the axe at a dangerous part of the body being the head. The accused inflicted multiple blows on the deceased’s head. The accused is sentenced to 30 years imprisonment.”
According to court papers, on April 29, 2019 at Manomano village, Chief Mangwende in Murehwa, Rewu struck his 80-year-old father, Chamunorwa Alex Makumborega, killing him instantly.
Rewu and his father had a long-standing dispute and on the fateful day, they were intending to go to court where the now-deceased was seeking a protection order against him.
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