Volunteer cop axed to death

A MAN from Binga is on the run after allegedly fatally axing a member of the Neighbourhood Watch Committee (NWC) amid fears that he could have killed his wife and son as well.

Bongani Mudenda of Pashu Village allegedly viciously attacked Peter Mudimba - a father of three - on Tuesday last week.

Police found Mudimba's decomposing body in a hut at Mudenda's homestead two days later. The body had four deep cuts on the head and back.

The axe was still stuck in Mudimba's head.

Mudimba had been assigned by Chief Pashu to accompany Sinikiwe Ndlovu - Mudenda's estranged wife - to her homestead to collect her clothes and pick up her two-year-old son after she fled from the abusive Mudenda.

Police spokesperson for Matabeleland North Assistant Inspector Eglon Nkala confirmed receiving a report of the incident.

Chief Pashu yesterday told The Chronicle the community feared Mudenda could have killed his wife and son and hidden the bodies, as they were also missing.

Said Chief Pashu: "The woman came on Sunday to report a case of domestic violence against her husband. She said she wanted a separation. She initially reported to the police who referred the case to my court."

"The woman indicated that she had left behind a two-year-old son when she fled and that is when I instructed Mudimba to accompany her so she could collect some clothes and the boy," said Chief Pashu.

The chief narrated how Mudimba and Ndlovu went to the suspect's stepfather, Jacob Mudenda, who is a village head, to inform him about their mission and the case.

He said Mudimba left his bicycle and cellphone at Mudenda's stepfather's homestead which he was supposed to collect on his way back.

He told of the gory moment when on the following day, Mudenda decided to make a follow up after the trio failed to return.

He said the headman found the homestead deserted, peeped through the window and saw the blood curdling sight of Mudimba's body lying in a dried pool of blood.

"He went to inform headman Naison Mudenda who remained guarding the place as he came to report to my homestead," said Chief Pashu.

The chief phoned the police who attended the scene on Tuesday evening and villagers recovered some of the couple's property hidden in a bush near the homestead.

"We don't know where the woman and the boy are, she might have fled to her rural home in Nkayi or he may have killed them as well. However, there are suspicions Mudenda could still be in the area after villagers spotted his footprints," said the chief.

He said a team of watchmen noticed his footprints on Wednesday while there was a sign that someone had opened the door of the hut which had been closed.

"The next day his footprints were seen again and there was a small bag of mealie-meal in the house to show that he had come at night. Police also traced his footprints to the bus stop which is at the nearby shops on Thursday," added Chief Pashu.

He appealed to the police to help the community by tracking Mudenda down, saying villagers were now living in fear.

"This man is dangerous and can attack anyone judging by what he did. Crime is on the increase in this area and this is compounded by the fact that there is no police station nearby. We need police services here because whenever such crimes occur it takes time for them to attend which doesn't help in fighting crime," said Chief Pashu.

The nearest police base is at Tinde which is about 30km away from the area.

Mudimba was buried on Thursday after a postmortem was conducted in Bulawayo.