Barman killed for running our of beer

A Bulawayo circuit High Court judge sitting in Gweru has slapped a Lower Gweru gold panner with an effective 22-year-jail term for murder.

According to prosecutor Mirirai Shumba, it was the state's case that on May 18 2013, Zenzo Sibanda (30) of London farm, Lower Gweru, went to Gretina Green Mine bottle store in the area in the company of friends with the intention of buying beer.

However, upon arrival the group was told by the now deceased barman, Chrispen Makuvire (25), that beer had run-out and that the bar had closed for the day.

This did not go down well with Sibanda, who pulled out a knife and stabbed Makuvire once on the chest before he collapsed.

He was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

Passing the sentence, Justice Maxwell Takuva said the justice system should unite in deterring such wanton behaviour through lengthy jail terms.

"In cases like these, gold panners take lives of defenceless citizens who would not have provoked them at all.

"Accordingly, stiffer penalties should now be slapped on such panners who put the law into their own hands," Takuva said.

Cases of violent deaths involving gold panners were rampant in the Midlands, a province known for its massive deposits of alluvial mineral, among them gold.

Illegal gold panners use weapons like machetes, axes, knives and drill bits during confrontations at beer binges or at bars where they spend money from illicit gold sales.

"Gold panners should immediately desist from the habit of using dangerous weapons like knives each time they feel angered by other citizens.

"Such actions are inherently wicked and the courts should join societies in fighting them," the judge said.