A Mutare woman residing in Cape Town, South Africa, is on the run after allegedly scalding her husband with cooking oil over money meant for her lobola.
The two reportedly clashed over the money, leading to the tragic death of the husband, Mr Moses Mtukwa, who succumbed to injuries sustained in the attack at a Cape Town hospital last Thursday.
Mr Mtukwa (41) was hospitalised for two weeks and was on life-support before passing on, according to his older brother, Mr Davison Mtukwa.
In an interview with The Manica Post, Mr Davison Mtukwa said after Moreblessing Nyakunu (40) scalded his brother with cooking oil, she stole 31 000 Rand and US$800 that her husband was saving to pay her bride price and disappeared.
“My brother died due to the serious injuries he sustained after being scalded with cooking oil. What hurts most is that Nyakunu did not inform us that our brother was in hospital. Instead, each time we called him or her, she would answer the calls and pretended as if everything was fine. Each time my sister who is also in South Africa called looking for Moses, Nyakunu would tell her that he (Moses) was at home, while she was at work,” he said.
Davison said they only got to know that their brother was in hospital five days after his admission when a well-wisher who had rushed him to the hospital contacted their sister.
“When my sister got there, she was immediately told by the hospital authorities that Moses was supposed to be put on life-support system, and we had to run around looking for money for him to receive medical attention. At that time, Moses was still talking, and he told our sister that he had 31 000 Rand and US$800 at home. He said the money was meant to pay for Nyakunu’s bride price. He once told me about his savings, and we were planning to visit the Nyakunu family to settle some of the lobola arrears,” he said.
Davison said when their sister went to Moses’ home, it was deserted and the money was nowhere to be found as Nyakunu had fled with it.
“My brother and Nyakunu had a child together while they were still staying in Bvirindi Village under Chief Zimunya back then. They, however, parted ways and we were surprised to hear that he was cohabiting with her when he migrated to South Africa. They both came back home and he paid part of the bride price for her. Up until now, we never heard of any altercation between them. They appeared the most perfect couple to us. We were shocked to hear of this tragedy.
“My brother told our sister before he was put on life-support that Nyakunu had scalded him because she wanted to use the lobola money for something else. After scalding him, neighbours rushed him to the hospital. She disappeared with the money. Up to now, South African police are looking for her because she committed a heinous crime,” he said.
The family has in its possession WhatsApp messages and audios sent between the couple hours prior to the commission of the heinous crime.
In the chats, Nyakunu stated that she wanted to use the money for something else, and Moses had to give it to her, and look for the lobola money later.
The Mutukwa family is now appealing to well-wishers to help them raise 17 000 Rand required for the repatriation of the deceased’s body for burial.
“27 000 Rand is what is needed in total, and as a family we have managed to raise 10 000 Rand. Had she not stolen the money, we would have been able to bring back home our loved one, and lay him to his final resting place. We are unable to do that at the moment. We are appealing to Zimbabwe, family and friends to help us so that our brother’s remains are brought home,” said the man.
Efforts to contact Moreblessing Nyakunu on WhatsApp were fruitless as her phone was unreachable.
When The Manica Post visited the Nyakunu homestead in Bvirindi Village on Tuesday afternoon, Moreblessing’s mother, Mrs Loveness Nyakunu and her two sisters were struggling to come to terms with the tragedy.
Mrs Nyakunu described her daughter as a moody and violent person.
“I do not want to lie, Moreblessing is a violent person and always clashed with her sisters, but we never thought that things would come to this. We never thought she would murder her husband and I was shocked when I heard of this sad development. I passed out and had to be rushed to the clinic where I was resuscitated,” said the elderly woman.
She said they approached the Mtukwa family on Monday to extend their condolences.
“When my daughter last called me, she said she had an altercation with her husband and he was admitted in hospital. Since then, her phones have been off and we cannot reach her. What she has done has left us in a big mess. I do not know how we will be able to raise the money that the Mtukwa family wants for the body to be repatriated to Zimbabwe,” she said amid sobs.
Moreblessing’s brother, Mr Tinashe Nyakunu said they are also looking for her.
“Moreblessing should come out of hiding and face the music. Yes, she erred, but she is still our sibling. She should surrender herself to the authorities so that the world knows the truth,” he said.
He also appealed to well-wishers to help them raise funds to repatriate Moses’ body.
For assistance, Mr Davison Mtukwa can be contacted on +263774411748. Those willing to help with cash can also send money to his EcoCash US$ account on that same number.
