Killer inyanga beat wife regularly

THE Bulawayo inyanga who allegedly beat his wife to death on Monday was an abusive husband who had deserted his home for two "small houses", his in-laws said yesterday.

The inyanga, Mnxwanelwa Hadebe (41) allegedly killed his wife, Simenyiwe Sibanda (30) in a fit of jealous rage, accusing her of having an affair with her cousin brother, on Monday.

The couple's two children, girls aged nine and three, reportedly witnessed the fatal beating.

Relatives yesterday said the youngest child had been so traumatised by the incident that she was having nightmares.

Speaking from their home in Old Lobengula suburb yesterday, Sibanda's uncle Mr George Nyathi said the family had received information that their daughter was regularly subjected to severe beatings.

"We heard that he had two small houses and one of them lived in Entumbane. We heard that he had stopped eating meals prepared by his wife and preferred to cook his own food. He often slept out and was in the habit of beating Simenyiwe until she passed out. We heard that he would revive her by pouring water on her body. We were told that on the fateful day he kept pouring buckets of water on her, thinking she would wake up, as usual," said Mr Nyathi.

He said the family was appalled at the brutality their daughter was exposed to.

Sibanda's grandfather, Mr Amos Vundla (72) said the couple's youngest daughter was having nightmares.

"She often screams at night. We think the incident affected her deeply," he said.

"We met with our in-laws today and we have expressed our displeasure at the disrespectful manner in which they conducted this whole affair."

Mr Vundla said Mr Hadebe's relatives had failed to pay $650 that they had asked for as a contribution towards funeral expenses.

"Simenyiwe will be laid to rest in Tsholotsho at Vukani Village under Chief Tategulu on Sunday. We are leaving tomorrow, with the body.

"We are very unhappy about the utter disrespect showed by our in-laws. To begin with, they never paid lobola for our daughter, our child was abused by their son, and he stayed with her body for about five hours before notifying anyone. Instead of coming to tell us about her death in person, they only phoned, more than 12 hours after the incident," said Mr Vundla.

He said the family was also angry because Mr Hadebe's relatives did not show remorse for what their son had done.

"They first said they did not know our daughter. When we came here on Tuesday to talk to them, they avoided us and preferred to meet us at a police station. They have also not been attending the funeral wake that we have been having and they have not been honest with us from the beginning," said Mr Vundla.

He said his family had resolved to finish with the burial first, before taking up the issue further.

Hadebe allegedly killed his wife on Monday at about 5pm at the couple's rented home in Magwegwe North suburb.

He allegedly used an electric cord to beat his wife, then broke a kitchen unit door and used it to hit her all over the body.

Hadebe reportedly smashed Sibanda's head against the wall, killing her while their children watched.

It is suspected that Hadebe stayed with the body for at least four hours, before making a false report to the police, claiming his wife had collapsed after having fits.