News / Local
Family members burnt to death in a suspected suicide case
27 Aug 2013 at 04:22hrs | Views
THREE family members from Bulawayo's Emakhandeni suburb were burnt to death, two of them beyond recognition, in a suspected suicide case.
The three, Mrs Chipo Mudinzwa and her son, Cleopas (37) and daughter, Christine (29) died when a mysterious fire gutted the house on Sunday night.
The family's property worth thousands of dollars also went up in smoke.
When a Chronicle news crew visited the home, Number 1852 yesterday morning, visibly sorrowful residents were still milling around the house discussing the issue with those close to the family saying they suspected that Mrs Mudinzwa and her children deliberately started the fire, judging by their behaviour in the past few days.
"For the past two weeks the three have been locking themselves up in the house even during the day saying they were afraid of coming out," said Mr Bernard Zvarivadza, a neighbour.
"As their closest neighbours we tried talking to them but failed. They all seemed to have developed mental problems because sometimes they would become violent.
"We strongly believe that they started the fire because when we tried to break the door after the fire had started it took us long to open. After opening we discovered that they had put a big drum and some goods behind the door to make it difficult to open."
Another resident who declined to be named said Mrs Mudinzwa had told them that there were strange creatures that wanted to kill them.
"Ubethi kulezinto ezingabantu abancane ezifuna ukubabulala. She said it was better to lock herself inside and stay safe with her children. Surprisingly her children had also developed the same problem," said a resident.
"At times she would talk to unseen people saying ngixoleleni loba ngonile. They would stay locked in the house all the time and we did not know how they survived."
A majority of residents could not explain what really happened, saying they only woke up at about 12 midnight and found the house in flames.
"I believe the fire started at 11.30pm because when I woke up at 12 midnight the whole house was on fire with flames coming out of the roof and windows.
"This is really shocking because we never heard anyone screaming," said another resident who identified herself as MaDube.
The residents said when the fire brigade arrived at about 1am, fire had extensively damaged the three-roomed house.
"When we finally entered the house with the police we found Christine and her mother dead in the dining room. Christine was still in a sitting position on the sofa with her mother lying on the floor. They were both burnt beyond recognition," said Mr Zvarivadza.
"Cleopas was in bed in another room. We suspect he died of suffocation because of smoke. The police took their charred remains at 5am."
Some residents suspect that the house was haunted saying two years ago one of the family members hanged himself in one of the rooms.
A close relative, Mr Thomas Mudinzwa, who found the news crew talking to neighbours, could not hold his tears when he arrived at the scene.
It took residents some minutes to console Mr Mudinzwa who struggled to come to terms with what had happened.
"This is my brother's family. I stay in Nkulumane and I received a phone call from Mai Huni, one of the neighbours, at about 2am. I struggled to come here as there was no transport," said Mr Mudinzwa.
"I finally resolved to walk. While I was on the road walking, the police made a phone call and they came to pick me up. We went to Luveve Police Station and I saw the charred remains of my Maiguru and Christine.
"The sight was horrific. They were defaced while their intestines and lungs were out. The bodies were taken to the United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) for post-mortem."
Mr Mudinzwa said although he was aware of the problem in the family he did not suspect that it could lead to such a tragedy.
"My brother died a few years ago. Even if there was a problem, losing three people is painful and difficult to understand. I do not know how to explain this," he said.
Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson Inspector Mandlenkosi Moyo confirmed the incident.
"I confirm the incident of fire where three lives were lost. The matter is under investigation," said Insp Moyo.
The three, Mrs Chipo Mudinzwa and her son, Cleopas (37) and daughter, Christine (29) died when a mysterious fire gutted the house on Sunday night.
The family's property worth thousands of dollars also went up in smoke.
When a Chronicle news crew visited the home, Number 1852 yesterday morning, visibly sorrowful residents were still milling around the house discussing the issue with those close to the family saying they suspected that Mrs Mudinzwa and her children deliberately started the fire, judging by their behaviour in the past few days.
"For the past two weeks the three have been locking themselves up in the house even during the day saying they were afraid of coming out," said Mr Bernard Zvarivadza, a neighbour.
"As their closest neighbours we tried talking to them but failed. They all seemed to have developed mental problems because sometimes they would become violent.
"We strongly believe that they started the fire because when we tried to break the door after the fire had started it took us long to open. After opening we discovered that they had put a big drum and some goods behind the door to make it difficult to open."
Another resident who declined to be named said Mrs Mudinzwa had told them that there were strange creatures that wanted to kill them.
"Ubethi kulezinto ezingabantu abancane ezifuna ukubabulala. She said it was better to lock herself inside and stay safe with her children. Surprisingly her children had also developed the same problem," said a resident.
"At times she would talk to unseen people saying ngixoleleni loba ngonile. They would stay locked in the house all the time and we did not know how they survived."
A majority of residents could not explain what really happened, saying they only woke up at about 12 midnight and found the house in flames.
"I believe the fire started at 11.30pm because when I woke up at 12 midnight the whole house was on fire with flames coming out of the roof and windows.
"This is really shocking because we never heard anyone screaming," said another resident who identified herself as MaDube.
The residents said when the fire brigade arrived at about 1am, fire had extensively damaged the three-roomed house.
"When we finally entered the house with the police we found Christine and her mother dead in the dining room. Christine was still in a sitting position on the sofa with her mother lying on the floor. They were both burnt beyond recognition," said Mr Zvarivadza.
"Cleopas was in bed in another room. We suspect he died of suffocation because of smoke. The police took their charred remains at 5am."
Some residents suspect that the house was haunted saying two years ago one of the family members hanged himself in one of the rooms.
A close relative, Mr Thomas Mudinzwa, who found the news crew talking to neighbours, could not hold his tears when he arrived at the scene.
It took residents some minutes to console Mr Mudinzwa who struggled to come to terms with what had happened.
"This is my brother's family. I stay in Nkulumane and I received a phone call from Mai Huni, one of the neighbours, at about 2am. I struggled to come here as there was no transport," said Mr Mudinzwa.
"I finally resolved to walk. While I was on the road walking, the police made a phone call and they came to pick me up. We went to Luveve Police Station and I saw the charred remains of my Maiguru and Christine.
"The sight was horrific. They were defaced while their intestines and lungs were out. The bodies were taken to the United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) for post-mortem."
Mr Mudinzwa said although he was aware of the problem in the family he did not suspect that it could lead to such a tragedy.
"My brother died a few years ago. Even if there was a problem, losing three people is painful and difficult to understand. I do not know how to explain this," he said.
Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson Inspector Mandlenkosi Moyo confirmed the incident.
"I confirm the incident of fire where three lives were lost. The matter is under investigation," said Insp Moyo.
Source - chronicle
