The streets of Zvishavane are echoing with a chilling tale of vigilante justice, where a suspected cellphone thief met his demise at the hands of a vengeful mob. The incident, which unfolded on the 6th of July, has left the community reeling, raising questions about the rule of law and the growing trend of mob violence in Zimbabwe.
Nyasha Zimuto (23), Tawanda Masimba (51), and Jashab Bamala (28) now face murder charges after allegedly beating the victim, whose identity remains undisclosed, to death. The trio, fuelled by accusations of theft, unleashed a brutal assault on the suspected criminal, using a handbrake cable and a fan belt as weapons.
“It is the State’s case that on the 6th of July 2024, the accused persons confronted the deceased, accusing him of stealing their cousin’s mobile phone,” stated the National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe (NPAZ) in a statement on X. “They allegedly took turns to assault him using a handbrake cable and fan belt all over the body until he was unconscious. The deceased was ferried to the hospital where he died upon admission.”
The gruesome details of the assault paint a harrowing picture of the mob’s rage and the victim’s desperate struggle for survival. The use of such crude and brutal weapons underscores the savagery of the attack, highlighting the breakdown of civility and the growing intolerance for perceived wrongdoing in certain communities.
