Romantic Valentine's night ended in grief

WHAT was intended to be a romantic Valentine's night ended in grief when a spouse was grisly murdered in cold blood.

Wellington Chaminuka (38) met his fate in Zengeza 4, Chitungwiza while carrying flowers and a Valentine's card for his beloved wife Irene Mwanandimayi (33).

Wellington worked for the Harare City Council as a municipal policeman.

Irene was to only see an envelope, some traces of flowers and a pool of blood a stone throw away from their home where Wellington was fatally stabbed four times and robbed of his pair of trousers, shoes, flowers, Valentine's card other belongings he had.

What is heart-rending is that the scuffle began when Wellington was just 10 metres away from his homestead while his Grade Six son was among the first to see the body of his lifeless father lying in the grass.

The son was on his way to school.

And in what many believe is the use of juju to conceal any leads to the capture of the assailants, the assailants defecated at the scene of the initial scuffle and where Wellington's body was finally found.

The police report compiled on the crime scene stated that Wellington had been stabbed by a sharp object four times where he sustained deep cuts.

From the pool of blood where the scuffle could have started, there are also places where there are stains of blood along the way to the place where Wellington died.

Wellington's friend and workmate Birthwell Zimuto said he had spent the better part of the night with Wellington drinking beer at the Sobet Restaurant and Night Club which was also echoed by another friend Fortune Mupondiwa, a kombi driver.

"Wellington had flowers and a card addressed to his wife when we were having beer last night (Tuesday night).

"When we had almost become penniless, we parted ways around 1am," said Birthwell.

He said because it had been raining for the better part of the night and they could not accompany each other as they used to do.

"We usually accompany Wellington  after having our beers together with Mupondiwa but because of the rains, we were only two of us as Mupondiwa had left earlier. We then decided that we all leave for our respective homes," he said.

Birthwell said he was first to leave while Wellington indicated that he wanted to collect his card, flowers and two cellphones that were charging at Sobet.

"Wellington only had $2 which was meant for bread at home and transport to work the following day. I wonder what the assailants wanted," said Birthwell.

Another friend, Fortune said he did not stay long at the bar as he quickly went home after parking his kombi at Chitungwiza Central Hospital.

Wellington's wife Irene said she had heard people arguing that night and she kept on checking through the window in case she saw her husband.

"But I never heard my husband's voice from the arguments," said Irene.

She said she almost spent the night awake waiting for her husband only to hear of the gruesome murder this morning.

Irene and Wellington have three children â€" the eldest being in grade six while the youngest is only a year and half old.

"My husband was stabbed four times â€" on the stomach, neck, back and chest," said Irene.

A Chitungwiza Prophet Madzibaba Jadhi explained the feature of faeces at the scene of crime.

"Criminals defecate at crime scenes so that they are not easily detected. Sometimes they can go away with it.

"They are rituals they perform so that no further investigations are carried out," said Madzibaba Jadhi.