Domboshava Serial Rapist Jailed 34 Years
A serial rapist, Goodwill Mhandu (21), was on Wednesday, 01 November sentenced to 34 years in prison for raping and robbing three women in Domboshava over a two-year period, reported The Herald.
Mhandu was convicted of three counts of rape and three counts of robbery by Harare regional magistrate Letwin Rwodzi.
The magistrate initially sentenced Mhandu to 72 years in jail for the six counts.
On the rape charges, Mhandu was sentenced to 15 years in jail on each one of the three counts.
However, Magistrate Rwodzi then set the sentences to run concurrently, giving an effective 15 years, the same as for a single offence.
For the first robbery, he was sentenced to 12 years in jail of which two years were suspended conditionally.
One more year was suspended on condition that he pay back what he stole by the end of November 2023.
On the second robbery charge he was again sentenced to 12 years in prison, but this time three years were suspended on condition of good behaviour when he comes out of jail.
On the third robbery count the sentence was 24 months and six months were suspended.
The three effective sentences of nine years, nine years and 18 months were added to give 19.5 years.
That term was added to the effective 15 years for rape to give the 34.5 years total.
Allegations were that in November 2022, Mhandu armed with a machete and iron bar, broke into Joina City Tuckshop in Domboshava where the complainant was sleeping.
He tied the shopkeeper’s hands and legs before raping her three times without protection after threatening to chop off her head with the machete.
After raping her, he ransacked the tuckshop and stole US$150, $5 000, groceries and two cellphones.
According to the State Papers Mhandu is HIV positive.
On 26 January 2022, Mhandu broke into another shop called Hot Dog situated in Domboshava and threatened the woman who worked there with a knife, demanding cash.
He handcuffed her and demanded that she surrender the shop keys. After forcing her into the shop he tied her legs with a rope before raping her twice without protection.
Mhandu then opened the cash box and stole US$500, $2 000 and two cell phones.
On 06 January 2023, Mhandu broke into another woman’s house armed with an axe and a machete and ordered her to remain silent or else he would kill her.
He stole US$6 from her wallet and assaulted her demanding more money. Mhandu then raped her four times before packing her groceries into a bag and fled.
Mhandu was later arrested after a tip-off.
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