Drama as women fight over DEO at bus rank

A married Binga District Education Officer Mr Eddison Masungo has been caught up in a love scandal after his two alleged girlfriends fought over him at Binga Bus Rank.

Jane Muleya was charged with assault and malicious damage to property when she appeared before Binga magistrate Ms Ailene Munamati after she punched Ms Thulisiwe Mathema on the face and in the process cracked her IPad.

Mathema (29), is a teacher at Siachilaba Secondary School and had visited Mr Masungo when she was intercepted at the bus rank by Muleya (41), who lives at Binga Centre. There was drama as the two women raced against each other on their way to the police station barely 300 metres from the scene of the fight, as each of them wanted to be the first to make a report, the court heard.

Muleya pleaded not guilty to both charges.

She was found not guilty and acquitted of assault as the court established that she hit Ms Mathema during a fight hence both should have been charged with public fighting. She was, however, convicted of malicious damage to property and jailed for 10 days but the sentence was wholly suspended on condition she compensates Ms Mathema with $40 for the damaged phone before 31 August.

Said the magistrate in her ruling; "It is clear the two fought as the complainant was swollen above the eye while the accused injured her finger as she also claimed her teeth were shaking. It will be unfair to say the accused assaulted the complainant."

In denying the charges, Muleya accused Ms Mathema of snatching her boyfriend.

"I never saw the IPad and neither did I assault her. I only pushed her when we were fighting. We were planning to get married with Masungo and she is the reason why my marriage failed.

"She has a husband in Bulawayo but she is busy chasing other people's husbands. She even once visited and spent the night at our place after he introduced her as his niece and now she sleeps on my own bed with my boyfriend. In fact I have left him because he is no longer my class. I now date men of higher class who have cars," said Muleya.

Testified Mathema: "I came from Siachilaba to visit my boyfriend and the accused was at the bus rank when I dropped off. It seems she knew I was coming and she immediately jumped in front of me shouting wule likaMasungo as she accused me of snatching her boyfriend."

Ms Mathema told the court that in no time a fist had landed above her left eye. She blocked a second one which landed on the phone and it fell to the ground with a cracked screen, the court heard.

Prosecuting, Mr Bruce Maphosa said the fight took place on Thursday last week. "In the process of fighting, the accused damaged a Huawei IPad which cracked its screen. The complainant went to make a report to the police," he said.

The State invited Officer-in-Charge Binga Police Station Chief Inspector Cyprian Simba Mukahanana who attended to the two women after seeing them "dying to outpace" each other into the police station while Muleya was holding a bloodstained IPad which she hid in a flower pot at the station.