LUPANE — A 27- year-old man from Sibomvu village allegedly torched his mother-in-law’s hut and destroyed goods worth over $2 000 in a fit of rage after his wife deserted him following a domestic dispute.
Dumisani Mathe was slapped with an effective 36-month jail term last Thursday following his plea of guilty to arson and malicious injury to property.
The court heard that sometime in August last year, Mathe started co-habiting with Patricia Sibanda, the daughter of the complainant, Alita Nyoni, from the Jotsholo area in Lupane. A few months later, Nyoni sent a message advising Mathe to pay the bride price for her daughter, but he did not comply. However, Mathe and Sibanda later had endless squabbles, resulting in the latter going back to her parents’ home.
On June 18 this year, Mathe followed her and threatened to set her mother’s bedroom hut ablaze after his wife refused to go back with him. In the ensuing melee, the whole family fled into the night, leaving Mathe behind.
Thirty minutes later, Nyoni rushed back home after she discovered that her bedroom hut was on fire. When Mathe saw her approaching, he fled into the night but was later arrested.