News / Local
Elderly man brutally murdered for $20
05 Apr 2012 at 07:18hrs | Views
A young man who brutally murdered an elderly man who had allegedly stolen his $20 was yesterday sentenced to 16 years in jail.
Thandazani Mpofu (20), who worked and stayed at Plot Number 5, Wild East, Kezi, pleaded not guilty to the murder of Moga Rori (59), but was convicted of murder with actual intent by acting Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Meshack Cheda sitting with Mrs Isabelle Mashengele and Mr Patrick Hikwa as assessors.
He escaped the hangman's noose after the court found that extenuating circumstances existed in that he is a youthful first offender.
Mpofu was 19 years old when he committed the murder.
The court also found that Rori's actions of stealing his $20, which is a lot of money by any standards to everyone in the country, was betraying the trust that the young man had in him.
Rori, the court said, was expected to act as a guardian to the youngster, but instead decided to steal from him and went further to insult him by referring to his mother's private parts.
The court heard that on 7 September last year, Mpofu and Rori, who were employed at the same plot, took their axes in the morning and went into the bush to cut some fencing poles.
During the course of carrying the poles to the fence, Mpofu asked Rori as to when he would give him back his $20, which Rori had allegedly stolen from their bedroom sometime in August the same year.
Rori's response did not go down well with Mpofu, who jumped and kicked him in the face resulting in him falling to the ground. While lying down, Mpofu struck him once on the arms, legs and on the neck killing him instantly.
On realising that Rori had died, Mpofu dragged the body into a nearby thick bush before going back home and going to the shops where he spent the day but did not tell anyone.
When Mpofu left the shops he went to tell Mr Only Dube, a neighbour, and the police were eventually informed.
According to the post-mortem report that was produced in court as an exhibit, Rori suffered compound fractures on the neck, left and right arm and right leg. The pathologist concluded that the cause of death were multiple injuries as a result of an assault.
Ms Angeline Munyeriwa, of the Attorney General's Office prosecuted while Mr Thompson Mabhikwa, of Mabhikwa, Hikwa and Nyathi Legal Practitioners defended Mpofu pro deo.
Thandazani Mpofu (20), who worked and stayed at Plot Number 5, Wild East, Kezi, pleaded not guilty to the murder of Moga Rori (59), but was convicted of murder with actual intent by acting Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Meshack Cheda sitting with Mrs Isabelle Mashengele and Mr Patrick Hikwa as assessors.
He escaped the hangman's noose after the court found that extenuating circumstances existed in that he is a youthful first offender.
Mpofu was 19 years old when he committed the murder.
The court also found that Rori's actions of stealing his $20, which is a lot of money by any standards to everyone in the country, was betraying the trust that the young man had in him.
Rori, the court said, was expected to act as a guardian to the youngster, but instead decided to steal from him and went further to insult him by referring to his mother's private parts.
The court heard that on 7 September last year, Mpofu and Rori, who were employed at the same plot, took their axes in the morning and went into the bush to cut some fencing poles.
During the course of carrying the poles to the fence, Mpofu asked Rori as to when he would give him back his $20, which Rori had allegedly stolen from their bedroom sometime in August the same year.
Rori's response did not go down well with Mpofu, who jumped and kicked him in the face resulting in him falling to the ground. While lying down, Mpofu struck him once on the arms, legs and on the neck killing him instantly.
On realising that Rori had died, Mpofu dragged the body into a nearby thick bush before going back home and going to the shops where he spent the day but did not tell anyone.
When Mpofu left the shops he went to tell Mr Only Dube, a neighbour, and the police were eventually informed.
According to the post-mortem report that was produced in court as an exhibit, Rori suffered compound fractures on the neck, left and right arm and right leg. The pathologist concluded that the cause of death were multiple injuries as a result of an assault.
Ms Angeline Munyeriwa, of the Attorney General's Office prosecuted while Mr Thompson Mabhikwa, of Mabhikwa, Hikwa and Nyathi Legal Practitioners defended Mpofu pro deo.
Source - TC
