A ZVISHAVANE man and the step mother of a 10-year-old boy were, Thursday, jailed for an effective eight years for culpable homicide after they connived to assault the juvenile, accusing him of refusing to bath.
Kainos Shoko, 58, and Enita Zanamwe, 54, of Maglas suburb Zvishavane assaulted Tawanda Makoto with an unknown object for close to one hour after the boy allegedly indicated he could not bath on his own.
In anger Shoko and Zanamwe took turns to beat the minor and the boy succumbed to the assault injuries the following morning.
And in a bid to conceal the crime, the two claimed that the boy died from a headache he had earlier on complained of.
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| Boy (10) Dies After Parents Whip Him For An Hour For Refusing To Bath |
In passing sentence, Bulawayo High Court judge, justice Nokuthula Moyo sitting at Gweru High Court circuit said the pair were hard-hearted in the manner that they assaulted the juvenile leading to his death.
Prosecutors told the court that on February 13, 2013 at around 6.30pm, Zanamwe and the deceased, who was her step-son arrived home from the market.
At around 8pm, Zanamwe started assaulting the deceased accusing him of refusing to bath.
After the boy told her that he was unable to bath on his own, Zanamwe proceeded to tell Shoko that the juvenile was being stubborn, upon which Shoko joined in assaulting the boy. They only stopped assaulting the boy at around 9pm.
Court heard that the boy died the following day but, in her report, Zanamwe told police that the child had earlier complained of a headache.
However, one of the tenants at the house who had heard the duo assaulting the boy narrated how they had taken turns to beat him on the fateful night.
