The driver and conductor of a commuter omnibus, which caught fire on June 10, killing seven school children in Senga suburb, Gweru have been further remanded in custody to pave the way for forensic investigations before trial commences.
The driver Malcolm Elvis Cook (22) and Trinity Mudhenge (18), who was the conductor, appeared before Gweru regional magistrate Sibongile Marondedze, each charged with seven counts of culpable homicide.
According to the prosecution, forensic specialists were still analysing evidence from the inferno, which led Marondedze to postpone the matter to July 7.
The results of the forensic team are expected to help investigators establish and analyse the cause of the fire.
Allegations are that Mudhenge boarded a commuter omnibus with a jerry can holding about nine litres of petrol after the vehicle picked up pupils from different schools.
The court heard that a container filled with petrol was allegedly placed behind the driver’s seat before the fire broke out.
The court also heard that seven of the 24 children who were in the commuter omnibus died as a result of the inferno.
Prosecutor Sibangani Dube alleged the deaths resulted from negligent transportation and storage of fuel in a passenger vehicle.
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Meanwhile, Gweru district development coordinator Tarisai Mudadigwa, who also chairs the district civil protection unit, said affected families will continue to receive both material and psychosocial support until the matter is finalised.
“We will continue visiting the affected families with food hampers and psychosocial support teams to provide counselling and emotional support,” Mudadigwa said.
He said relevant authorities will continue attending to the families until the case is brought to closure.
