A 43-year-old man from Seke, Mashonaland East, allegedly doused his mother-in-law with petrol and set her alight using a cigarette lighter, leaving her severely burnt and hospitalised at Victoria Chitepo Provincial Hospital.
Loverage Abraham Muchapondwa is accused of committing the act in Chiduku Village, Chief Chiduku, Makoni District, Manicaland.
He allegedly attacked Fungai Sanderson (48) while she was walking her grandchild to school. He had reportedly travelled from Seke to confront his wife and children, who had fled following a domestic dispute.
Muchapondwa, unrepresented in court, appeared before Rusape regional magistrate Mr Francis Mapfumo on attempted murder charges. He was not asked to plead and was remanded in custody to 18 May, advised to apply for bail at the High Court.
Prosecutor Marlon Makamba said Sanderson was saved by her husband, who extinguished the flames after she cried for help. Said Makamba:
The accused is the complainant’s son-in-law. On April 30, around 7 AM, the accused visited the complainant’s homestead, where he encountered her accompanying her granddaughter to school.
The accused grabbed the complainant’s jacket by the collar and demanded that she return his family, as his wife and children had left him following a misunderstanding. Muchapondwa asked her why she had taken his children.
He produced a plastic bottle containing petrol and poured it over the complainant’s head and all over the body. He subsequently set her alight with a cigarette lighter, and she screamed for help.
Her husband intervened, removing her burning clothes. She was initially taken to a local clinic, then referred to Rusape General Hospital, where she was admitted.
On May 1, she was transferred to Victoria Chitepo Provincial Hospital, where she remains hospitalised. She sustained severe burns, and the medical affidavit is not yet available.
More: Manica Post
This man is really bad,he must not stay outside of prison,he is cruel and must pay for his actions. He is a barbarian.