News / National
'Woman kills lover, turns gun on self'
19 Jun 2018 at 07:11hrs | Views
AN unidentified woman allegedly gunned down her boyfriend before shooting herself in his room at the National Railways of Zimbabwe single quarters at Raylton in Bulawayo.
The woman is suspected to have shot her boyfriend, identified as Heater Chauke, at point blank range in the head before turning the gun on herself on Sunday night at Reading House building.
Some people at the scene said they suspected the couple was killed and a murder-suicide was staged.
National Police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba confirmed the incident.
She said Chauke and the woman were found in pools of blood with bullet wounds on their heads.
"I can confirm that we are investigating a murder case where two people were found dead. The man was lying on the floor with a bullet wound on the back of his head while the woman was lying on the bed with a gun wound on the left side of her head," said Snr Asst Comm Charamba.
She said the pistol that was used was reported missing on the same day the couple is suspected to have died, following an unlawful entry and theft at a house in Bellevue suburb.
"The woman was holding the pistol with her right hand. The weapon used was reported missing from a house in Bellevue suburb on Sunday. The money that was stolen at that house was found in the woman's bag," said Snr Asst Comm Charamba.
The whereabouts of Chauke's roommate, who discovered the bodies, are unknown.
A source close to investigations said the roommate, who was away for the weekend, found the bodies of the couple with bullet wounds on their heads yesterday morning.
Chauke, suspected to be in his early 30s, was a diesel plant fitter at NRZ while the woman is suspected to be in her mid 20s.
Police officers take away the bodies
Police officers take away the bodies
The motive behind the murder could not be established but it is suspected that the couple had a misunderstanding after spending the weekend together, since Chauke's roommate was away.
"Chauke's roommate had visited his family during the weekend. I suppose the woman spent the weekend with Chauke and they had a misunderstanding which pushed her to kill him. When the roommate came back around 7AM, he found the door locked from inside," said the source.
"He knocked but no one answered so he used his key to push the key that was in the lock and unlocked, only to find the two lying dead. The woman is said to have been holding a pistol. It is very sad that such a young woman can be brave enough to kill someone."
The source said the pistol was alleged to have been stolen as a report of a missing pistol had been made prior to the incident.
"It seems the pistol was stolen from somewhere because it is said to have been matching a pistol that someone reported missing sometime back. The woman had probably planned to kill him for quite some time and was waiting for a time when the roommate was away."
A woman at the scene had a different version.
"This is too neat to be a passion killing. I think someone killed these two people. Police investigations will give us the answer," she said.
When The Chronicle arrived at the scene, NRZ workers were milling around Reading House building where the incident happened.
They appeared to be in shock and resisted security details' attempts to chase them from the scene.
The bodies were taken to Mpilo Central Hospital mortuary.
Chauke's relatives, who were at the scene, declined to comment on the tragedy.
"I am still in shock. I don't even know what happened and have no approval from elders to comment on behalf of the family so I don't have anything to say," said a woman who declined to be named.
NRZ public relations officer Mr Nyasha Maravanyika confirmed the incident and bemoaned the tragic death of their employee who he said worked well with others.
"I can confirm that we received news that one of our employees died after a woman came and shot him. We do not know if she was his girlfriend or wife. We are saddened by such loss of life because the man had been working well with us," he said.
"We urge our workers to prioritise dialogue and share problems with others who can help. They can also go for counselling with their partners to avoid violence."
The woman is suspected to have shot her boyfriend, identified as Heater Chauke, at point blank range in the head before turning the gun on herself on Sunday night at Reading House building.
Some people at the scene said they suspected the couple was killed and a murder-suicide was staged.
National Police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba confirmed the incident.
She said Chauke and the woman were found in pools of blood with bullet wounds on their heads.
"I can confirm that we are investigating a murder case where two people were found dead. The man was lying on the floor with a bullet wound on the back of his head while the woman was lying on the bed with a gun wound on the left side of her head," said Snr Asst Comm Charamba.
She said the pistol that was used was reported missing on the same day the couple is suspected to have died, following an unlawful entry and theft at a house in Bellevue suburb.
"The woman was holding the pistol with her right hand. The weapon used was reported missing from a house in Bellevue suburb on Sunday. The money that was stolen at that house was found in the woman's bag," said Snr Asst Comm Charamba.
The whereabouts of Chauke's roommate, who discovered the bodies, are unknown.
A source close to investigations said the roommate, who was away for the weekend, found the bodies of the couple with bullet wounds on their heads yesterday morning.
Chauke, suspected to be in his early 30s, was a diesel plant fitter at NRZ while the woman is suspected to be in her mid 20s.
Police officers take away the bodies
Police officers take away the bodies
The motive behind the murder could not be established but it is suspected that the couple had a misunderstanding after spending the weekend together, since Chauke's roommate was away.
"Chauke's roommate had visited his family during the weekend. I suppose the woman spent the weekend with Chauke and they had a misunderstanding which pushed her to kill him. When the roommate came back around 7AM, he found the door locked from inside," said the source.
"He knocked but no one answered so he used his key to push the key that was in the lock and unlocked, only to find the two lying dead. The woman is said to have been holding a pistol. It is very sad that such a young woman can be brave enough to kill someone."
The source said the pistol was alleged to have been stolen as a report of a missing pistol had been made prior to the incident.
"It seems the pistol was stolen from somewhere because it is said to have been matching a pistol that someone reported missing sometime back. The woman had probably planned to kill him for quite some time and was waiting for a time when the roommate was away."
A woman at the scene had a different version.
"This is too neat to be a passion killing. I think someone killed these two people. Police investigations will give us the answer," she said.
When The Chronicle arrived at the scene, NRZ workers were milling around Reading House building where the incident happened.
They appeared to be in shock and resisted security details' attempts to chase them from the scene.
The bodies were taken to Mpilo Central Hospital mortuary.
Chauke's relatives, who were at the scene, declined to comment on the tragedy.
"I am still in shock. I don't even know what happened and have no approval from elders to comment on behalf of the family so I don't have anything to say," said a woman who declined to be named.
NRZ public relations officer Mr Nyasha Maravanyika confirmed the incident and bemoaned the tragic death of their employee who he said worked well with others.
"I can confirm that we received news that one of our employees died after a woman came and shot him. We do not know if she was his girlfriend or wife. We are saddened by such loss of life because the man had been working well with us," he said.
"We urge our workers to prioritise dialogue and share problems with others who can help. They can also go for counselling with their partners to avoid violence."
Source - chronicle
