The convicted
killers are Tapiwa Makore, an uncle of the deceased and Tafadzwa Shamba, a herdboy.
The duo were
tried and found guilty of the murder by High Court judge Justice Munamato
Mutevedzi.
Makore was
murdered in September 2020 and his body was dismembered into multiple pieces.
His torso was
discovered being devoured by dogs the morning after he was murdered while his
other body parts were found shoved in a pit latrine.
The boy’s torso
was buried a year after he was killed while his head remains missing.
The two
convicts denied the allegations of murdering the boy during trial although
Shamba had confessed earlier on, giving vivid descriptions on how they killed
the boy.
Shamba and
Tapiwa Makore senior approached the Supreme Court to appeal against the death
sentence arguing that the High Court erred in convicting and sentencing them.
Supreme Court
judges Nicholas Mathonsi, Antonia Guvava and Joseph Musakwa reserved the
judgement in February after hearing the case.
The duo
represented by their lawyers Kudzai Kadzere of Kadzere, Hungwe and Mandevere
Legal Practitioners argued that the High Court misdirected itself in finding
them guilty of murder.
Makore senior
submitted that the High Court misdirected itself in failing to give him the
benefit of the doubt arguing that he was not present when the deceased was
murdered.
He argued that
there was no direct evidence or enough circumstantial evidence tying him to the
murder.
Mkaore senior
told the court that he did not assign Shamba to kill the deceased.
Makore senior
said items that were found at his home do not prove that he assisted in the
commission of the crime.
"The fact
that a black plastic bag was allegedly found at the appellant’s (Makore senior)
home does not mean that it is the same plastic bag that the first accused
(Shamba) confessed as having been used to carry the body parts of the now
deceased,” his lawyers submitted..
“No forensic
examination was done to determine if there was DNA of the now deceased on it.
“Further, most
people have black plastic bags in their homes so it cannot be concluded that
the appellant gave the first accused person the black plastic for the
commission of the crime.
“There was
nothing peculiar about there being a black plastic bag at the Appellant’s
home.”
Shamba and
Makore senior also told the court that the blood that was found on their
trousers was that of a chicken that was slaughtered by the former.
“The appellant
was not present at the scene of the crime, nor did he engage in any preparatory
acts that would indicate his involvement,” he submitted.
“Transparency
regarding evidence the appellant did not attempt to conceal the blood stained
trousers discovered by his cousin brothers’ wives.
“This
cooperation indicates a lack of guilt and willingness to assist in the
investigation.”
Makore senior said Shamba wanted to fix him by
implicating him in the murder case.
He also argued
that the death sentence penalty induced a sense of shock. Standard
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