Man spared jail after assaulting village head

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A MAN who threatened to kill his sister over a piece of land in Mashure resettlement area, West Nicholson, was yesterday spared the agony of prison life.

A MAN who threatened to kill his sister over a piece of land in Mashure resettlement area, West Nicholson, and subsequently assaulted a village head and his nephew in the ensuing mêlée, was yesterday spared the agony of prison life when he was sentenced to perform community service.

Albert Ncube

Alphament Ndlovu (42) pleaded guilty to threatening to kill his sister, Eunice (46) and to two counts of assault, when he appeared before Gwanda magistrate Arafat Kozanai.

He was sentenced to one year in prison, with three months suspended for five years on condition he does not commit a similar offence within that period.

The remaining nine months were suspended on condition he completes 315 hours of community service at Zenda Primary School in Mberengwa.

Allegations against Ndlovu, as presented by prosecutor Alexander Moyo, were that on August 8, Eunice was coming from a village meeting when the accused called her, but she ignored him.

He followed her to the homestead and started threatening to kill her if she did not leave the stand which was left by their late mother. Ndlovu claimed the stand belonged to him and his sister did not have a right to stay there.

Sensing danger, Eunice ran away and sought refuge at the village head Danny Ndebele’s homestead.

Together with one Eliot Nyoni, they accompanied Eunice to the homestead to have the matter resolved.

Ndlovu charged at Ndebele, telling him not to interfere in their family matters and slapped the village head twice on the back part of the head with open hands.

Boniface Dube intervened and tried to stop Ndlovu from assaulting Ndebele, but was in the process forcibly pushed to the ground.

In sentencing Ndlovu, the magistrate noted the accused assaulted a very respectable member of the society and that assault cases were now prevalent.