A man whose wife eloped with her clandestine lover on their wedding night, along with his in-laws, has been convicted and sentenced for @ss@ulting the bride’s secret partner.
B Metro has it that the Groom Mbongeni Moyo, along with his in-laws—Allen Munhuru (26), Prosper Ndlovu (33), and Fungai Mpofu—faced charges at the Western Commonage Magistrate courts in Bulawayo relating to the incident.
Initially charged with attempted murd3r, the quartet appeared before regional magistrate Sibongile Msipa-Marondedze, who downgraded the charges to assault after the prosecution could not substantiate the attempted murd3r claims.
Following the trial’s conclusion earlier this week, each man was fined US$300.
Failure to pay the fine would result in a six-month prison sentence. Furthermore, an additional six-month sentence was suspended on the condition that they do not commit any @ss@ult-related offenses for the next five years.
The court acknowledged that Geshom Gwatiringa, the complainant and a police officer, had engaged in an affair with Moyo’s wife, Sisasenkosi Mpofu, shortly after their wedding.
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Gwatiringa expressed remorse for his actions when confronted by Moyo and his relatives, which the court viewed as a mitigating factor.
It was noted that Gwatiringa’s illicit relationship with a married woman justified the @ss#ult to some degree. He also failed to provide a medical report corroborating severe injuries from the @ss@ult, with a general medical report indicating that he was not severely injured, having been struck only with open hands.
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The magistrate emphasized that the mitigating circumstances outweighed the aggravating factors. It was revealed that the bride had vanished with her secret l0ver, who works at Hillside Police Station, shortly before 7 PM on their wedding day and returned home around midnight in an !ntox1cated state.
Upon her return, she knocked on the window, asking her husband, a respected elder at the SDA church, to open the door for a conversation. She claimed that Gwatiringa had given her wine, leading her to become inebriated and forgetful about the events that transpired afterward.
Moyo, upon discovering messages on his wife’s cellphone that revealed her feelings for Gwatiringa and their time together that night, confided in his in-laws. Together, they visited Gwatiringa’s residence in Emakhandeni around 1 AM, where they discovered him in bed with Sisasenkosi.
They confronted Gwatiringa with the messages and, following the confrontation, took him to Entumbane Police Station, during which they allegedly @ss@ulted him, accusing him of the affair.
Subsequently, Gwatiringa brought charges against Moyo and his in-laws, initially alleging attempted murder. The court, however, ultimately found them guilty of @ss@ult.
