News / National
Baby strangler jailed for 10 years
02 Feb 2016 at 05:25hrs | Views
A 30-YEAR-OLD Chirumhanzu woman convicted of murder with actual intent after strangling her two year-old son from a previous marriage to please her new husband and in-laws, has been jailed for 10 years.
Sentencing Precious Hamandishe, of Ritize Village, headman Chigegwe in Chirumhanzu, Bulawayo High Court Judge, Justice Martin Makonese, sitting at the Gweru High Court said the baby killer was lucky as the courts are prohibited from passing capital punishment on women.
He said women offenders according to the laws of the country ought to be treated with some form of lenience especially when they are first offenders.
Justice Makonese said while Hamandishe took a stupid decision by sacrificing her son for new love and marriage, the court had been lenient because she was an unsophisticated person who dropped out of school in Form One.
"The courts are prohibited from sentencing women to death," he said.
Hamandishe'smoral blameworthiness, Justice Makonese said, was very high considering that the murder was for selfish reasons. "The accused underwent extreme physical and emotional stress after being rejected by her family. She tried to protect her marriage and took a stupid decision," said the judge.
"The accused acted after careful planning and there is an element of premeditation. Such conduct is cruel and evil. This offence is inexcusable. You are sentenced to 10 years in prison of which three years are suspended for five years on condition of good behaviour."
In her defence, Hmandishe said she wanted to please her new husband who did not want to see her child.
"This is my third marriage and my new husband and his family ordered me to take my son back to his father if I was to stay at their homestead. At the same time my son had a heart problem and the nurses had told me that he was going to die. So I took it upon myself to kill him to save my new marriage," Hamandishe said.
Prosecutor, Mirirai Shumba, told the court that sometime in January 2015, Hamandishe got married to Runesu.
He said she took her son with her to her new husband's village.
"However, her in-laws were not comfortable living with her child and they advised her to surrender the boy to his father," said Shumba.
He said Hamandishe did as she was ordered and on January 7 was unsuccessful in her bid to take the child to her ex-husband.
Shumba said the woman took her child back to her new husband's village.
"On the way back, she took her son to a certain spot and placed him on a rock. She proceeded to make some bark fibre and tied his neck with it and strangled him. The boy died and she left him there," he said.
On January 18, the body was discovered and investigations led to Hamandishe's arrest.
Sentencing Precious Hamandishe, of Ritize Village, headman Chigegwe in Chirumhanzu, Bulawayo High Court Judge, Justice Martin Makonese, sitting at the Gweru High Court said the baby killer was lucky as the courts are prohibited from passing capital punishment on women.
He said women offenders according to the laws of the country ought to be treated with some form of lenience especially when they are first offenders.
Justice Makonese said while Hamandishe took a stupid decision by sacrificing her son for new love and marriage, the court had been lenient because she was an unsophisticated person who dropped out of school in Form One.
"The courts are prohibited from sentencing women to death," he said.
Hamandishe'smoral blameworthiness, Justice Makonese said, was very high considering that the murder was for selfish reasons. "The accused underwent extreme physical and emotional stress after being rejected by her family. She tried to protect her marriage and took a stupid decision," said the judge.
"The accused acted after careful planning and there is an element of premeditation. Such conduct is cruel and evil. This offence is inexcusable. You are sentenced to 10 years in prison of which three years are suspended for five years on condition of good behaviour."
In her defence, Hmandishe said she wanted to please her new husband who did not want to see her child.
"This is my third marriage and my new husband and his family ordered me to take my son back to his father if I was to stay at their homestead. At the same time my son had a heart problem and the nurses had told me that he was going to die. So I took it upon myself to kill him to save my new marriage," Hamandishe said.
Prosecutor, Mirirai Shumba, told the court that sometime in January 2015, Hamandishe got married to Runesu.
He said she took her son with her to her new husband's village.
"However, her in-laws were not comfortable living with her child and they advised her to surrender the boy to his father," said Shumba.
He said Hamandishe did as she was ordered and on January 7 was unsuccessful in her bid to take the child to her ex-husband.
Shumba said the woman took her child back to her new husband's village.
"On the way back, she took her son to a certain spot and placed him on a rock. She proceeded to make some bark fibre and tied his neck with it and strangled him. The boy died and she left him there," he said.
On January 18, the body was discovered and investigations led to Hamandishe's arrest.
Source - chronicle
