Chiredzi Man (23) , Chops Off His Dad’s Right Hand, Beheads Him, And Rips His Chest Open

IN a heart-rending incident, a 23-year-old Chiredzi man killed his father, cut off his right hand and ripped his chest open with the intention of taking internal body parts allegedly after a visit to a traditional healer. The killing was done in a typical traditional animal slaughter fashion where the accused allegedly useda machete to chop off his father’s head and later used the services of a knife to remove the right hand.After that, he ripped the chest open to gain access to the internal body parts but was mobbed by villagers who later restrained him from doing so albeit in a violent manner where he was using the hand of his father’s lifeless body as a weapon to attack villagers who wanted to effect citizen arrest on him.

The accused Rodrick Chauke of village Chirhilele,  appeared before Chiredzi magistrate Mr Tafadzwa Mhlanga last Monday facing a charge of murder as defined in Section 47 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act Chapter 9:23. He was remanded in custody to tomorrow and was advised to apply to the High Court for bail.

Circumstances as told the court by the prosecutor, Mr Gladmore Gwara, are that at the beginning of March, Rodrick came back from South Africa where he was working complaining of sore legs. Sometime this month he then decided to consult a traditional healer identified as Sohani Chirhelele with the intention of getting medication for his legs.

On 12 May a few days after his visit to the traditional healer a misunderstanding ensued with his wife Constance Baloyi over an unknown issue and the accused assaulted her and she sustained injuries on the back, neck and finger. The court further heard that the noise from the scuffle between the two prompted the deceased and his wife Sarudzai Tsuvuka to rush to the accused’s homestead which is not very far away from theirs to investigate.

On arrival, they tried to intervene to stop the couple from fighting. It was during the melee that Constance bolted out of their bedroom hut and disappeared into the night leaving the father and his wife wrestling with the accused. The prosecutor further told the court that the accused in a fit of rage picked a stone and hit his father once on the head and he fell down unconscious.

Sensing danger, the court heard, Sarudzai rushed to the homestead of Thomas Simango who also happens to be her brother as the accused was threatening everyone within his sight with violence.

It was during the absence of everyone at home that Rodrick took the opportunity to arm himself with a machete and attacked his father, killing him instantly. It was the State case that the accused then took a knife and cut off the right hand before using the machete and the knife to rip open the chest of his father.

The State through the prosecutor Mr Gwara further told the court that Simango and Sarudzai together with other villagers rushed back to the scene only to find the body of the now deceased lying in the coagulation of his blood while Rodrick was busy reaching out for the internal body parts after ripping open the chest of his father.

Efforts to stop him from doing so yielded more violence after Rodrick started attacking villagers with his father’s hand that he had cut off. The case was later reported at Davata Police Base and Rodrick was arrested while his father’s body was taken to Chiredzi District General Hospital for a post-mortem.

Vincent Gono. Source-sundaynewsonline Chiredzi

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