News / Regional
Man murders boy (9), burns the boy, sentenced to hang
24 Oct 2012 at 06:07hrs | Views
A man from the Ndolwane area of Bulilima District who brutally murdered a nine-year-old boy and burnt the body was yesterday sentenced to death.
Michael Goodluck Sivako Nleya (45) pleaded not guilty to murder, but was convicted of murder with actual intent by Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Lawrence Kamocha sitting with Mrs Isabel Mashengele and Mr Stanley Hadebe as assessors.
The court found no extenuating circumstances in the case in that he killed a defenceless child without any provocation.
The court heard that the boy was a son of Nleya's former girlfriend, whom he accused of dumping him for another man.
On 8 October 2010, at about 2am, Nleya went to Thandabantu Store at Butshe Business Centre, Ndolwane, where the boy was sleeping with his grandmother, Ms Phephelaphi Dube and others.
When he got to the store, he smashed windowpanes, got inside and demanded money from Ms Dube.
He was given R600, 300 Pula, a Nokia cellphone and a Samsung cellphone with a Botswana SIM card.
After that he assaulted the grandmother all over the body with a log.
She sustained deep cuts on the head and fracture on the right leg due to the assault.
He then called the boy by name and disappeared with him into the night.
Nleya walked with the boy for about seven kilometres and when they got into the Velemu area, he severely assaulted him with an ox-drawn plough heel on the head and severed his limbs.
When he was satisfied that the boy was dead, he set the body alight.
After committing the heinous murder, Nleya escaped to South Africa and later Botswana and while there he started sending threatening messages to the boy's uncle, Mr Tsepo Msebele, who works in South Africa.
On 14 June last year, Mr Msebele teamed up with other men and apprehended Nleya in South Africa and he was smuggled into Zimbabwe and later handed over to detectives at Plumtree.
According to a post-mortem carried out on the boy, the cause of death could not be ascertained because he suffered 90 percent burns.
Mr Lewis Maunze, of the Attorney General's Office prosecuted and Mr Phenias Madzivire, of Joel Pincus, Konson and Wolhuter defended Nleya pro deo.
Michael Goodluck Sivako Nleya (45) pleaded not guilty to murder, but was convicted of murder with actual intent by Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Lawrence Kamocha sitting with Mrs Isabel Mashengele and Mr Stanley Hadebe as assessors.
The court found no extenuating circumstances in the case in that he killed a defenceless child without any provocation.
The court heard that the boy was a son of Nleya's former girlfriend, whom he accused of dumping him for another man.
On 8 October 2010, at about 2am, Nleya went to Thandabantu Store at Butshe Business Centre, Ndolwane, where the boy was sleeping with his grandmother, Ms Phephelaphi Dube and others.
When he got to the store, he smashed windowpanes, got inside and demanded money from Ms Dube.
He was given R600, 300 Pula, a Nokia cellphone and a Samsung cellphone with a Botswana SIM card.
After that he assaulted the grandmother all over the body with a log.
She sustained deep cuts on the head and fracture on the right leg due to the assault.
He then called the boy by name and disappeared with him into the night.
Nleya walked with the boy for about seven kilometres and when they got into the Velemu area, he severely assaulted him with an ox-drawn plough heel on the head and severed his limbs.
When he was satisfied that the boy was dead, he set the body alight.
After committing the heinous murder, Nleya escaped to South Africa and later Botswana and while there he started sending threatening messages to the boy's uncle, Mr Tsepo Msebele, who works in South Africa.
On 14 June last year, Mr Msebele teamed up with other men and apprehended Nleya in South Africa and he was smuggled into Zimbabwe and later handed over to detectives at Plumtree.
According to a post-mortem carried out on the boy, the cause of death could not be ascertained because he suffered 90 percent burns.
Mr Lewis Maunze, of the Attorney General's Office prosecuted and Mr Phenias Madzivire, of Joel Pincus, Konson and Wolhuter defended Nleya pro deo.
Source - TC
