The High Court sitting at Gweru has jailed Abel Mativenga (20) of Watershed Farm to two life prison terms after convicting him of the murder of his two children who perished in a deliberately set fire.
On March 19, the offender locked the now deceased Everjoy Mangena (13) and Natasha Kanyama (5) inside their bedroom hut and set it ablaze.
The offender became enraged over allegations that his parents were witches.
Ignoring advice against violence, he obtained a lighter, tied the hut door with wire to trap the children and set the structure on fire.
He fled the scene and watched from hiding as neighbours failed to rescue the victims.
The hut collapsed, killing both children, whose bodies were later recovered with 100% burns.
Given the premeditation, deliberate entrapment and the killing of two minors, the court imposed the maximum penalty of two life sentences.
This was a cruel, premeditated act that took two young lives.
The court’s sentence affirms that such violence, especially against children, will draw the harshest punishment.
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