Mentally ill man kills tot, throws body into river

A 20-year-old mentally challenged man from Machova Village under Chief Chingoma in Mberengwa allegedly fatally assaulted his five-year- old nephew and threw the body in the river.

Upenyu Mthombeni appeared before Mberengwa Magistrate Mr Shepherd Munjanja facing one count of murder.

He was not asked to plead and his matter was postponed indefinitely. Mr Munjanja committed Mthombeni to Mlondolozi mental institution in Bulawayo for treatment. Prosecuting Miss Faith Mwale told the court that on January 16, Mthombeni went to herd goats in the company of his nephew Bhaureni Banda.

"On January 16 around 11am, the accused and the deceased went to herd goats at the nearby grazing lands," said Miss Mwale.

The court heard that a misunderstanding ensued between the two and Mthombeni allegedly fatally assaulted the deceased.

"The two had a misunderstanding over an unknown issue and the accused fatally assaulted his nephew. He also inserted two logs into his nephew's buttocks before throwing him into Jindu River," she said.

Around 12 mid-day, Nyasha Banda, who is the elder brother to the now deceased followed to the grazing land.

"The deceased's brother followed the two to grazing lands. Upon arrival, he inquired about the deceased's whereabouts from the accused, and the accused pointed to the river.

"Nyasha rushed to the river and discovered that his brother was already dead," she said.

The matter was reported to the police leading to Mthombeni's arrest.

Banda's body was retrieved the following day and it was ferried to a Bulawayo hospital for post mortem.