Two Zimbabwean men were hauled before the court on Friday for allegedly murdering a local farm employee at Nottingham Estate outside Beit Bridge, after he had caught them stealing mealie-meal in his hut.

Tsungirirayi Gwatipedza (36) and Cornilius Moyo (23), both of Maranda village in the neighbouring Mwenezi district, were not asked to plead to a murder charge when they appeared before a local magistrate, Mr Carrington Karidzagundi.

The case was postponed to 6 March and they remain in custody.

The prosecutor, Mr Marvelous Chikomo, said that on 15 February at around 06:00, Gwatipedza and Moyo spotted the victim, Clement Zhou, as he was departing from his home at the Nottingham Estate compound and heading to work. They then hatched a plan to steal a bag of mealie meal from his hut. The two men proceeded to Zhou’s hut and forced opened the door after destroying the padlock with a chisel to gain entry, the court heard.

The court was told that Zhou later discovered that he had forgotten his clock-in card at home and went back to collect it. On arrival, he found the two accused persons rummaging through his hut and he confronted them. The court heard that, while in the process of arguing, Gwatipedza pulled out a hammer and struck the victim on the head and he fell down. The two men started assaulting Zhou, using logs and sticks, until he died.

The accused then allegedly stole some mealie meal and fled from the scene, leaving Zhou’s body in a pool of blood.

The incident was later discovered by a workmate who had gone to check on Zhou, and he then alerted a farm security guard. The matter was reported to the police, leading to the arrest of Gwatipedza and Moyo, whose shirt was bloodstained as a result of the alleged assault.