A CHIKURUBI Maximum Prison inmate cut short the prison sentence of a fellow inmate after striking him dead with a metal hoe.
Rifias Mhandiko – a mental patient detained at Chikurubi Maximum Prison’s Psychiatric Hospital and serving sentence for two counts of murder – sneaked in a hoe into the cells before committing the heinous act.
The 31-year-old Mhandiko on Monday appeared before Victoria Mashamba at the Harare Magistrates’ Courts facing charges of murdering an inmate, Tapiwa Alhwise Nduna.
On September 21, at a time not known, accused who was working in the stores office at Chikurubi allegedly wrapped a hoe in a blanket and took it into the cells without being noticed.
After the inmates were locked up at 4pm, Mhandiko allegedly woke up other prisoners at 11pm and ordered them to cover their faces and remain quiet.
Accused is said to have then struck the now deceased, Nduna, with the hoe several times on the head, resulting in the instant death of the victim.
Mhandiko threatened to kill anyone who would alert the prison authorities before tying the now deceased’s legs using a rope.
Postmortem results confirmed that brain injury, multiple skull bones fracture and severe head trauma to have been the cause of the death.
Prison officers Tonderai Tanda and Brighton Chitsa discovered Nduna’s corpse in a pool of blood the following morning, having noticed that he was missing following a roll call.
The alleged tool of murder was recovered.
The matter was remanded to December 23.
