THE Masvingo High Court has acquitted a man accused of murdering his girlfriend, ruling that the State failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt in a complex case marked by conflicting expert evidence and investigative shortcomings.
Calvin Munorwei was being charged with the murder of his girlfriend, Laura Tendai Saineti, who died in December 2024 after sustaining severe head and neck injuries along the Masvingo-Beitbridge Road.
Munorwei denied the charge when he appeared before Justice Christopher Dube-Banda.
Delivering the judgment recently, Justice Dube-Banda said the case presented a “50-50” scenario, where two plausible explanations for the woman’s death remained unresolved — either she was assaulted, or she fell or jumped from a vehicle.
“The State has not proved that the accused assaulted the deceased, causing the injuries that led to her death,” the judge ruled.
“The accused is entitled to the benefit of the doubt.”
The court heard that Saineti was last seen alive in the company of Munorwei on the night of December 13, 2024.
Witnesses testified that the couple had a misunderstanding, with Saineti reportedly riding in the loading box of Munorwei’s vehicle.
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A medical doctor revealed to the court that the injuries were consistent with a severe blow to the head, suggesting assault.
However, police witnesses and other evidence introduced competing theories, including the possibility that Saineti could have fallen or jumped from the vehicle.
Crucially, the court found that expert evidence was not definitive. While the doctor ruled out a fall from a fast-moving vehicle, he did not exclude the possibility of injury from a stationary or slow-moving vehicle.
The judgment also sharply criticised the prosecution’s handling of the case, highlighting key evidentiary gaps.
The court noted that the State failed to produce important material, including a confirmed warned and cautioned statement made by the accused and a sketch plan of the scene.
It said that was an “unsatisfactory approach,” particularly in a case involving loss of life.
“The prosecutor has a duty to see that all available evidence is presented… firmly and fairly,” the judge said.
In addition, inconsistencies in witness statements and failure to fully challenge Munorwei’s version during cross-examination weakened the State’s case.
Although the court acknowledged that suspicion against the accused was strong — especially as he was the last person seen with the deceased — it stressed that suspicion alone cannot sustain a conviction.
“There is a body of evidence suggesting the accused might have murdered the deceased. There is also an equally strong body of evidence suggesting he might not have,” the court said.
The court concluded that the evidence did not exclude reasonable alternative explanations for the death, including the possibility that Saineti may have jumped or fallen from the vehicle.
Munorwei, who denied the charge and maintained that the deceased may have accidentally fallen or jumped from his vehicle, was found not guilty and acquitted.
