Friend killer faints in court

A 17-YEAR-OLD pupil from Bulawayo who accidentally hit his friend with a stone leading to his death during a rival teenage gang fight, yesterday fainted in court soon after his warned and cautioned statement was read out.

The boy, who cannot be named because he is a minor, has to appear at the Western Commonage Courts once every month for his routine remand until his trial.

While in court, he started gasping for air and collapsed. This happened after his friend's relatives walked in.

As the accused turned to walk out of the court, his eyes met with some of the relatives' eyes and suddenly he became stiff.

The boy began to quiver and panted for air as the relatives proceeded to take their seats. Prosecutors rendered first aid and called an ambulance.

They said the boy could have fainted because he might be traumatised after killing his friend and having to face the relatives in court.

The court heard that the teenage boy together with the deceased, Michael Dube, got involved in a fight with two juveniles who are still at large in Nkulumane suburb two weeks ago.

During the scuffle, the unknown juveniles began to assault Michael and overpowered him.

In an attempt to protect Michael, the accused picked a stone and threw it at the attackers. They allegedly dodged the missile and it hit Michael on the head. He was admitted to Mpilo Central Hospital and died the following day.