Triple murderer sentenced to 27 years in jail

Lebogang Mosikare | Tuesday August 23, 2016 15:56

 

Mugundu Mushongo, 40, shot and killed Muzulu Jackson and his wife, Kathiko Jackson, and their nephew, Kaikura Kebonyekgosi, at Chikumuchu village near Shakawe in April, 2009.

Mushongo’s sentences were backdated to August, 2009 when he was incarcerated and are to run concurrently.

Passing sentence, Justice Barnabas Nyamadzabo said that there were extenuating circumstances and therefore the accused deserved a lesser sentence. “The accused did not plan to kill the deceased. He just killed them in the spur of the moment. He is also from a rural background and did not have any formal education, which in my view made him act in the manner he did unlike people who have gone through formal education,” said Nyamadzabo.

Nyamadzabo added that the accused came from a remote and poverty-stricken area where there are little or no resources and that his illiteracy made him think that the P1,100 he robbed the deceased of was a lot of money.

The particulars of the offences are that Mushongo killed the deceased when they went to the cattlepost to look for their lost cattle.

“On their way the deceased met Mushongo who snatched Kathiko Jackson’s bag, which contained money and cellphones. Muzulu Jackson then tried to hit Mushongo with a knobkerrie, but before he could hit him, Mushongo withdrew a gun from the holster then shot Muzulu in the shoulder and left him to die,” said Nyamadzabo, adding that Muzulu bled profusely.

The judge said that Mushongo then continued to kill Kathiko and Kebonyekgosi.

“The accused then dragged his victims who were still bleeding profusely under a tree. It should be noted that the place where the accused shot his victims is a dense bush with a lot of dangerous wild animals. There is no evidence that wild animals ate the deceased. Although there is no witness who saw what transpired, it can safely be concluded that it is the accused who shot the deceased,” said Nyamadzabo. The accused told the court that he smoked dagga, a drug he blames for his dangerous actions. Mushungo’s attorney Unangoni Tema had earlier pleaded with the court to spare the life of the accused because his parents died when he was very young.

“The accused was raised by his sister and he cannot even recall when his parents passed on because he did not attain any formal education. He lived under abject poverty at Samuchima where there are no resources that can improve his life,” said Tema. Morever, Tema pleaded with the court to consider that the accused has been in custody for almost seven years when sentencing him. He implored the court to tamper justice with mercy.