Married man dies in the arms of his girlfriend

A LOVE affair has ended tragically for a married man who allegedly died in the arms of his girlfriend three days after they moved in together in Bulawayo's Old Lobengula suburb.

Samson Ndebele, whose age could not be ascertained but was said to be in his late 30s, died yesterday morning at around 9AM after allegedly complaining of excruciating stomach cramps for about an hour.

A family member, Mr Daniel Sibanda, refused to comment on the incident and referred questions to a family spokesperson, who asked The Chronicle news crew to leave.

"This is a family matter. You are not welcome. Please show yourselves out," said the brother to the deceased, who was only referred to as Baba Ndebele.

However, a family member who preferred anonymity said foul play is suspected as Ndebele was in perfect health.

"We are definitely going to launch a probe because we cannot understand how somebody can just die yet he was so well and fresh (sic). We will not bury him until we get transparency in the form of a detailed postmortem," he said.

Ndebele, who is said to be a father of four, had moved in with his girlfriend on Saturday evening into their new lodgings. His family allegedly stays in the rural areas where he visits often.

Neighbours said Ndebele's girlfriend, who refused to speak to the Press, had not informed her landlord about her boyfriend's death but had told her employer who lives about a kilometre away.

Police were called to the scene at around 9:30AM but arrived after 1PM, with a Runyaradzo Funeral parlour hearse.

After the body was taken, the family left the deceased's lodgings and proceeded to his aunt's place where they held the funeral wake.

Nobody seemed to notice Ndebele's girlfriend, who was alone crying in a corner while most of the women were comforting the deceased person's mother.

Bulawayo police spokesperson Inspector Precious Simango was not available for comment.