The
accused is a male adult aged 26 years at the time of the commission of the
offence. He stands accused of the crime of murder, it being alleged that
on the 9th December 2009, he killed one Letwin Muremba, a female
aged 18 years at the relevant time.
The accused
has tendered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity.
The
brief facts are that on the fateful day, the deceased was at home at Village
Mabodza, Chief Chiwundura, in the Midlands Province and doing her
laundry. The accused was also present at the homestead. The accused
and the deceased had a minor misunderstanding after the accused had delayed
bringing water for the laundry. The accused person then armed himself with
an axe and struck the deceased twice on the head with the cutting edge of the
axe and the deceased fell to the ground. The accused then lifted the
deceased to his bedroom and placed her on the floor. He then proceeded to
strike the deceased several times on the head with the axe until he crushed her
skull. The deceased's skull was opened and she died instantly. The
accused person locked the door and disappeared from the crime scene. The
remains of the deceased were discovered by her husband, one Henry Zvoushe, who
alerted other villagers leading to his arrest by the police….,.
It is
evident from the Statement of Agreed Facts which has been tendered as exhibit 1
by both State and Defence counsel that the accused did commit the terrible
crime. It is also clear that the attack was serious and unprovoked and the
circumstances support the submission that the accused must have suffered from
some mental disability at the time the crime was committed….,.
The
State further produced, by consent, an affidavit in terms of section 278(3) of
the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act [Chapter 9:07] which is marked exhibit
3. The report by a Psychiatrist Consultant, Dr Elena Poskotchinova,
details the mental history of the accused person. I will not repeat the
entire report of the Psychiatrist but it important to observe that the accused
is a known psychiatric patient. He had been treated at Ingutsheni Hospital on
two occasions, from April 1998 to May 1999. He was being treated for a
mental illness known as Schizophrenia paranoia. In January 1998, he
escaped from Gokwe Hospital where he was due for treatment for a mental problem
after he tried to kill his uncle and set him on fire. The Psychiatrist
concluded that in her opinion, at the time of the alleged offence, the accused
was indeed suffering from mental disorder and was so affected that he could not
possibly have been legally responsible for his actions. Her findings were
that the accused person was a danger to society as he had been arrested for
attempted murder in 1998 and murder in 2000, and that the accused required
mental treatment.
We
are satisfied that from the evidence that has been placed before us that the
concession that has been made by the State, in accepting a plea of not guilty
by reason of insanity, was properly made.
Accordingly,
and, in terms of the provisions of section 29 of the Mental Health Act [Chapter
5:12], we return a special verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity. The
accused person shall be returned to Hwa Hwa Prison for further care and
treatment for his mental condition.
