A 38-year-old Bulawayo man cold-bloodedly murdered his girlfriend at a bed and breakfast lodge in Bradfield, Bulawayo, on Saturday evening before committing suicide by crashing his vehicle onto an oncoming bus along the Bulawayo-Gwanda Highway.
Mandlenkosi Dube of Cowdray Park suburb allegedly strangled Precious Dube (29), from Nketa suburb over an undisclosed dispute and money issues.
After murdering his girlfriend Dube is reported to have attempted to flee to South Africa using his white Mercedes Benz but then decided to end his life along the way.
He committed the offence at around 5:30pm, before going on to crash his vehicle onto a bus along Bulawayo-Gwanda Road near Kensington shops where seven passengers sustained minor injuries and were treated and discharged.
Dube suffered serious head injuries and died on the spot.
Before taking his own life, Dube recorded and sent a WhatsApp message to his wife telling her of what he had done, Acting Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Nomalanga Msebele, said while confirming the incident.
“On 23 December 2023 at about 17:30 hours the couple were at a BnB in Bradfield when they had a misunderstanding over money.
“From our investigations, we discovered that a male juvenile who was present when the incident occurred overheard Dube shouting demanding his money from the now deceased,” Asst Insp Msebele said.
She said the juvenile saw the now deceased running towards the cottage from the main house where she asked the children to call the police.
“An enraged Dube was in pursuit and shouting. The children then scurried for cover as they too feared for their lives. Some ran and hid in their bedrooms while the others shouted for help,” said Asst Insp Msebele.
“The children who were peeking from their bedroom saw Dube wrestling with Precious, whom he was strangling and telling to die. He then left the room after about 30 minutes.”
Asst Insp Msebele said the children then emerged from their hiding places, only to see Dube lying motionless on the floor.
Asst Insp Msebele said the children then ran to the shops to seek help.
“They narrated the incident to a vendor who then called their guardian who was in town informing her about the incident at the house.
“She hired a taxi home and found her lying on the floor in her bedroom facing upwards,” she said.
Asst Insp Msebele said a report was made at ZRP Khumalo on the same day before police removed the body from the house.
“She was pronounced dead by a doctor at UBH (United Bulawayo Hospitals) and her body is at the mortuary awaiting postmortem,” said Asst Insp Msebele.
She said police discovered blood stains on the floor at the main house, where the misunderstanding purportedly erupted.
“A shoe belonging to Dube was also found in the house. There were also blood stains on a blue decoration ball in the main house. In the cottage, blood stains were found on the wall in the bedroom where she was murdered.
“The deceased’s forehead had a minor cut and was swollen. She also had blood coming from her mouth. Her lips and tongue were also swollen and had bruises on the neck from suspected strangulation and bruises on the right lower arm,” said Asst Insp Msebele.
