Double crossing teacher jailed for wife battery

A GWANDA High School teacher has been sentenced to two years in prison for brutally assaulting his wife after she caught him with a small house.

Njabulo Ndlovu (36) was caught by his wife Ms Senziwe Mafu (33) with his new found love at the couple’s matrimonial home in Matshetsheni area.

He went berserk and assaulted her leaving her lying in a pool of blood, before driving off with his mistress to Gwanda town.

Ms Mafu suffered permanent disability due to the assault.

Ndlovu, who was an English teacher at the school, pleaded not guilty to physical abuse but Gwanda resident magistrate, Miss Nomagugu Ncube, convicted him and sentenced him to 24 months in prison.

Miss Ncube conditionally suspended four months for five years, leaving Ndlovu with an effective 20 months to serve.

She said Ndlovu’s moral blameworthiness was too high and a deterrent sentence was appropriate in the case.

“What aggravates this case is that you intentionally assaulted your wife and left her with permanent injuries as stated in the medical report. The court also considered the fact that she’s now walking aided by crutches. Your case is more of an attempted murder and not of physical abuse, therefore giving a community service sentence will be trivialising it. The sentence ought to set an example to other people out there,” said Miss Ncube.

Charges against Ndlovu are that on June 5 this year, at around 1PM, he left his wife at their matrimonial home at Gwanda High School staff cottages after indicating that he was going into the Central Business District for business.

Later in the day, Ms Mafu proceeded to their stand in Matshetsheni to check progress as the homestead was under construction.

She found her husband having a nice time with his mistress and Ndlovu locked his unnamed lover in the house.

A misunderstanding arose between Ndlovu and Ms Mafu as she demanded that he opens the door.

In a fit of rage, Mafu picked a stone and broke a window.

Ndlovu pushed his wife to the ground and hit her several times with fists on the head and bashed her against a stone and a pillar.

He then took his mistress into the car and they drove off leaving his wife for dead.

A passerby spotted Ms Mafu lying unconscious and took her to hospital where she was admitted.

As a result of the injuries, Ms Mafu was unable to pass urine. — @richardmuponde.