Man Shot Dead At A Farm During Stampede For Leftover Maize Cobs
Two security guards allegedly shot and killed a man at Baguta Farm Compound in Chinhoyi, Mashonaland West Province on Saturday, 20 April, police have said.
The man was shot dead when the two guards were trying to disperse a crowd that had gathered in an attempt to scrounge for leftover maize cobs in the fields at the farm.
In a statement, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) said the now deceased had charged at the guards, armed with a knife when he was shot dead. Reads the statement:
The ZRP confirms a shooting incident in which two security guards, Luckmore Mhiti (30) and Evans Jakarasi (33) shot dead a yet-to-be-identified man at Baguta Farm Compound, Chinhoyi on 20/04/24.
The victim had tried to attack the security guards with a knife after the security guards had fired warning shots to disperse a crowd which had gathered at the farm to pick leftover maize cobs in the fields.
The security guards were hired by the farm owner to provide security at the farm since he was harvesting maize using a combine harvester.
According to a report, Zimbabwe’s maize harvest is expected to halve to 1.1 million tonnes in 2024 due to an El Niño-induced drought and this poses a huge grain deficit and threatens food security for poor households in the country.
The annual maize consumption requirement for human consumption in Zimbabwe is approximately 1.8 million tonnes, not counting animal feed.
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